DISCUSSION
Someone
told me years ago that you can’t please everyone and if you do, then you must
be doing something wrong. The older I get the more I understand
their point. It doesn’t matter how much you try to be the best
person you can be, there will always be those that want to criticize, ridicule
or demean who you are or what you do. What makes it difficult is
that those are usually the only comments you might hear. These criticisms
come in many forms; whether it’s you’re not good enough, you’re not enough, or
you’re just not that important; they all hurt! So how do we learn to
handle them? How do we not allow them to corrupt our own self-worth
and self-image? Believe it or not, King Saul leaves us with a great
example. As the newly appointed King of Israel, Saul had his
share of critics. In fact, the Bible refers to them in the New
American Standard Version as “worthless fellows”. In I Samuel 10:
27, we read that there were those that doubted Saul’s ability to lead. They
despised him and did not offer him any gift to show their
support. Now the Bible doesn’t come right out and say that these
people were very vocal about it, but that seems to be the implication when we
see Saul’s response. The Bible says that Saul “held his peace”;
other versions say that he “Kept silent”. How can we follow that
example? First, Saul knew that there were those who did offer him
support and encouragement and those that did believe in
him. Secondly, Saul knew that God had selected him to be
King. That meant that even if everyone else did not believe in him,
God did. When it comes down to it, God’s approval is all that we
should be concerned about. 2 Timothy 2:15 tells us to “Study
to show ourselves approved of God…”. Ephesians
2.10 reminds us that we are “His workmanship”, “His creation”. It
is God who has created us, and we need to be reminded that “God don’t make
junk”. So, the next time someone says something to you that is
hurtful, unflattering and not supportive of you, just remember to hold your
peace; because God made you and He loves you just the way you are!
Prayer
Requests:_______________________________________________________________