A God Pleaser, Not A People Pleaser
By Jessica Brodie
When I was a kid, I had a reputation in my family for telling white lies. “If you want the truth about how you look, ask Sara, not Jessica,” family members would say. “Jessica will just say you look great.”
It’s not that I would outright lie, at least not in my view. But as a sunny, encouraging, not terribly detail-oriented person, I guess I typically saw past wardrobe malfunctions or anything else people wanted me to comment on and instead just looked at the overall package, which I thought looked good! My sister was more observant and forthright, kindly telling someone if that color looked awful on them or if their pants didn’t fit quite right. She was valued, respected, and appreciated for her honesty.
It’s hard to do that in life sometimes, isn’t it? Especially for those of us who are people pleasers, it’s tough to tell someone a truth you know might make them cringe. But sometimes it must be done.
For example, in relationships, if your spouse, close friend, or relative is doing something that consistently makes you feel like garbage, you need to be honest and speak up about it. They need to be able to do the same with you.
Or if someone in your world is blatantly sinning, and you know what they are doing is going against their Christian values, it’s important to speak up and help them stay accountable. It doesn’t mean you need to go around shouting about or pointing fingers at other people’s sins, focusing on their shortcomings instead of your own, but speaking out can genuinely be helpful. We’re supposed to help each other stay accountable in our walk with the Lord.
All this reminds me a bit of the prophet Micaiah in 2 Chronicles 18. King Ahab of Israel really wanted King Jehoshaphat of Judah to go to war with him. Jehoshaphat was willing but first urged Ahab to ask a true prophet of the Lord what God would have him do. All the other prophets agreed a war would be victorious, but Jehoshaphat looked at Ahab.
“Don’t you have any prophets of the Lord here in Israel?” he asked.
Ahab admitted they did have one, Micaiah, but Ahab didn’t like Micaiah because he always predicted doom for him.
Jehoshaphat encouraged him to call on this prophet, however, so Ahab did. Just before the prophet Micaiah went in to see the king, he was urged to go along with what the other prophets were saying, because all of the other prophets were predicting success.
But Micaiah said no.
“As surely as the Lord lives, I can tell him only what my God says,” Micaiah said (2 Chronicles 18:13 NIV).
Ahab didn’t like what this prophet had to say and locked him up in prison. But sure enough, Micaiah spoke the truth. Ahab died in battle.
Can you imagine how difficult it must have been for this prophet to speak the truth? It’s one thing when speaking the truth might hurt someone’s feelings or cause us to be unliked. But sometimes speaking the truth can bring dire consequences. We can face prison or execution, or lose our jobs or other things that are important to us.
But it is so important to stay strong in our convictions and tell the truth. It’s especially important when this is about matters of faith. Truthfulness and honesty establish trust and respect, and they please God. Telling any kind of falsehood is a sin. Titus 1:2 and Hebrews 6:18 remind us God cannot lie.
We should not, either—no matter how good the reason might seem.
Years ago, I heard about a terrorist on an airplane who asked if anyone on that flight was a Christian. The terrorist brandished a gun, and it was clear that whoever admitted to being a Christian would be killed. One man stood up and said, “Yes, I am a Christian.” He was indeed killed.
I think about that a lot.
If someone was holding a gun to my head, demanding to know if I was a Christian, would I say yes? Would you, knowing that your truthful “yes” meant a bullet in the brain?
I’ve determined in my soul that I will say yes, that I will claim Christ now and always, no matter the earthly consequences. I hope and pray I have the courage if or when the time comes.
Like the prophet Micaiah, we need to stay strong in our beliefs and say only what God wants us to say.
Sometimes the world seems to stand against everything we hold dear. Sometimes we face unpopularity, imprisonment, or even death for what we believe in.
But Jesus said we are not to fear what this world can do but rather what God can do (Matthew 10:28). We are to keep our eyes on eternity and understand that what is right, what our convictions are, is the most important thing.
Let’s strive to be a God pleaser, not a people pleaser.
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