“I want to be liked”.. Does This Sound Familiar?

Due to a critical article on Christian yoga in a Danish newspaper and an ongoing online debate, I’ve been thinking about this concept that many of us know:

"I wanna be liked by people"

Do you know what I mean? We might do things we actually don’t want to do just to be liked…

Or maybe it’s the other way around:

We do things so people don’t find us strange or weird. We are afraid of being too different.

We might keep quiet in a group discussion even though we have an opinion - we don't say anything because our opinion differs from others in the group.

How much effort and mental energy goes into being liked in your everyday life? One hour? Five hours per day?

If my main goal in life was to please others or make them like me, I would have chosen the wrong path with CrossYoga! That becomes obvious in the above-mentioned online debate.

But thank God that it has never been my main goal. I do care about what others think, but there are more things to take into consideration, e.g. my call. The tasks I believe God gave me are far more important than ‘the liking of others’.

It is possible to find freedom and acceptance in life without others’ ‘likes’. It is not the same as ‘not caring about others or listening’. It is knowing in heart and mind that you live mainly for the audience of One - God!

It is so liberating.

And I hope you, too, can experience the freedom that comes from knowing that you don't have to live for everyone’s approval

Prayer:

God, may your approval and calling be my main focus.
Help me let go of the ensnaring bonds of others’ ‘liking’ and acceptance.