We all want people to like us and admire us. It is in our nature to be in relationships with people. But how often have you found yourself overly concerned about what people think about you? Do you wear or not wear certain things because you feel that someone may or may not like what you are wearing? Do you do or not do certain things because you fear that someone may not approve? How many times have you not done something that was on your heart to do because you feared that someone wouldn’t accept you or understand you?   Fear of what others think of us can ruin God’s plan for our lives.

I remember for many years of my life I lived by the approval of others. I did things that I didn’t really want to do and did not do things that I wanted to do, just because I was trying to fit in. I wouldn’t be who I really was because I was afraid that someone wouldn’t like who I was. I wanted to feel like I belonged so I would adapt to my surroundings, no matter how much I would really disagree with what was going on in my surroundings.

It was so freeing for me when I learned that statics said that no matter what you do, 10% of people were not going to like you. It was so relieving to discover that I did not have to try to get everyone to like or approve of me. I was finally free to be me because I understood that no matter what I did, not everyone was going to like me. I was able to start being who it was that God created me to be without the fear of someone not approving of it. I didn’t realize how much I was allowing the approval of man to run my life until I was free from it. And I became so much happier when I stopped living for the approval of others because I was able to be happy with myself.

We all want to be liked and approved of but the truth is that not everyone is going to like or approve of us. And that is okay. All that really matters is that we are happy with who we are and that we are living the life that God has for us. Don’t let others dictate how you wear your hair, what clothes that you wear, what music you like to listen to, goals that you want to achieve, the career path that you want to take, how you feel about things, how you handle situations, the way that you care for yourself, the way that you parent your children, and etc. Follow your heart and be the person that God has created you to be and have the best life possible!!