WHEN LOVE GETS LOUDER — PART 5
Fear is part of being human, but it was never meant to tell us how to live. In this series, we'll look honestly at the voice of fear while discovering again the Perfect Love that draws us toward Himself.
Who Holds My Approval?
Finding Freedom From The Fear Of People
“The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is safe.” — Proverbs 29:25
Why Their Opinion Matters
Have you ever noticed how much power another person's opinion can have over you?
We want to be accepted, affirmed, and approved.
There is nothing wrong with that desire. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit created us from relationship, through relationship, and for relationship.
We were never designed to live without needing one another.
But another person was never meant to become the source of our worth.
When Relationship Becomes A Snare
The fear of people rarely begins with being physically afraid of them.
We fear their rejection, disappointment, criticism, or withheld approval.
Before long, we may find ourselves adjusting who we are to get from someone what we're afraid they won't give.
That's the snare Proverbs describes.
I spent years trying to gain from people something they were never capable of giving perfectly.
Acceptance. Affirmation. Approval. (There are those three, again.)
And...Love.
Only Abba can be the Source of Perfect Love.
Source And Resource
People are beautiful resources through which we experience love.
A friend's encouragement, a spouse's affection, a parent's affirmation, or someone's simple kindness can become wonderful expressions of the Father's heart.
But the pipe carrying the water isn't the Source of the water.
I've often said, “We default to the resource when we don't trust the Source.”
When I know my Father's acceptance is settled, I can enjoy your approval without needing it to tell me who I am. I can receive your affirmation without becoming dependent upon it for my worth.
Free To Love
That's where relationships become much freer.
I no longer need you to fill something only Abba can fill, and you no longer have to carry the impossible weight of proving that I am worthy of love.
I am already His beloved.
From that safe place, I can stop using relationships to find my worth and become free to simply love and be loved.
Reflection
Whose approval has too much power over me?
Where am I looking to a resource for something only the Source can provide?
How would knowing I am already accepted change the way I love others?
Prayer