deny yourself – Seek Grow Love

“You do you!” This phrase is ubiquitous… I’ve seen it on social media, heard it on commercials, and tween shows my daughter enjoys watching. I’ve even heard actual people say it directly to actual people.

On the face of it, it’s a pretty positive and encouraging phrase. Don’t let others define you. Do what you enjoy. Do what makes you happy! And that’s all great and wonderful…to a point. That point is the Holy Bible. You can totally do You if the You that you do is aligned with God’s word. The problem comes when your You goes with whatever you FEEL is right, rather than what you KNOW is scriptural.

Here in Proverbs 14 (especially in verse 12) we are reminded that so many of the things, thoughts, and actions we think are right, actually lead to destruction.

Proverbs 14:1 really hit me hard in this area. Unlike the wise woman building her house, I was letting my struggle with anger threaten mine. For a season, my anger was quick, hot, and in my mind, justified. I was right to be angry. I was being taken for granted, no one understood what I was going through, why was everything up to me??? I often felt the anger from my stomach up to my jaw. Proverbs 14 repeatedly warns of the folly of anger (16, 17, 29) but I was choosing to follow my feelings over wisdom.

I thought I was right…but only because of the grace of God and a forgiving family, my “rightness” did not lead to destruction.

Everyone should evaluate their You. If doing You involves sin (Galatians 5:19-21), you must let that go. Christ goes even further to say that if we are to be his disciples, we must DENY ourselves, take up our crosses, and follow him (Matthew 16:24).

When looking to Godly wisdom, such as found in Proverbs 14, You will start to look less like you and more like Christ. That is true wisdom.

So this song came out when I was 14 (1986). Having it tucked in my head has often helped me make choices to please God.

GodPleaser by Petra

(Songwriters: Bob Hartman Godpleaser lyrics © Dawn Treader Music)

So many voices telling me which way to go

So many choices come from those who think they know

There’s a way that seems right to a man

But it only brings him death

I want to go the way that leads to life

Till I draw my dying breath

Don’t want to be a man pleaser – I want to be a God pleaser

I just want to have the wisdom to discern the two apart

Don’t want to be a man pleaser – I want to be a God pleaser

I just want to do the things that please the Father’s heart

Some make a sacrifice and never let it show

Some make a point of letting everybody know

Some will live their lives as unto men

And they have their reward

I just want to do everything I do

With all my heart unto the Lord

I just want my life to glorify His Son

To make my Father proud that I’m His child before I’m done

No need to pat me on the back or stop to shake my hand

I just want to hear my Father say “Well done, well done”

I just want to hear my Father say “Well done”

devotion by Maria Knowlton (IN) – originally posted for SeekGrowLove on Oct 14, 2019

Reflection Questions

Proverbs 14:12 is a classic “Think Again” verse. Who are some examples from the Bible of men and women who were on the way they thought was right but it was actually leading to destruction/death? Who discovered their mistake, thought again and corrected their path before destruction/death? Who did not?
When have you found you were on the wrong way, even though at one time it appeared right. Did you correct your way before you hit a bit of destruction? In what other ways can a closer evaluation of “You”/your way save you from more destruction/death?
Do you spend the most time and effort trying to please yourself, others or God? How can you focus more on pleasing God first?

Prayer

Dear Father, You are the One with all wisdom. Thank you for sharing it with us through Your Words. We pray for Your Spirit to guide us in discernment so we will see clearly the way we are on and know where to Think Again and alter our course. Help us build our house with Your wisdom that we might look more and more like Your pleasing Son. In his name we pray, Amen

SGL.2026.Calendar Download

Matthew 15-17

Tuesday, May 2

So…my daughter, Mackenzie, informed me that if my devotional is more than a few paragraphs long, it is likely she will not have the perseverance to read it all. Therefore, I am going to need to jump right in to the part for my kids. I always told my children that one of my favorite verses was Ephesians 6:1, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.” But now looking at that verse a little more closely, I don’t think it has the same impact as the new verse I found. Matthew 15:4 says, “For God said, “Honor your father and mother, and, he who speaks evil of father or mother, let him be put to death.”” I think this could have been more influential in their younger years.

In Matthew 15, the Pharisees were annoying Jesus as usual. They said to Jesus (in a high-pitched whiny complaining voice), “your disciples didn’t wash their hands before they ate.” Jesus explained that everything that goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and gets pooped out (Rick’s Non-Standard Version). Furthermore, the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and these defile man (evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, and slanders). Therefore, you can try to control what comes out of your mouth, but a better idea is to “get your heart right” since that is where your words come from. So how do you get your heart right? The simple answer is to become unselfish. I am convinced that every sin comes from selfishness. We steal because we want something. We lie to try to protect ourselves or get something we want. We have sex outside of marriage because it feels good. Go ahead; try to think of a sin that doesn’t have to do with our selfishness.

I am about to lose Mackenzie so I want to make this final point quickly. Jesus summed this all up really well in Matthew 16:24-25. He said that if you wish to come after him, you need to deny yourself and take up his cross and follow him. He went on to say that whoever wishes to save their life shall lose it; but whoever loses their life for his sake shall find it. You need to become unselfish if you want to save your life for an eternity. You need to get your heart right and live your life for God and others, not yourself. And to bring this full circle, if you get your heart right, good things will come out of your mouth about your parents and we won’t have to put you to death.

-Rick McClain

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