Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ. Galatians 1:10 NIV 

It’s relaxing to be around people who don’t care about pleasing other people. It’s such an admirable way to live, and it can’t be a simple one to get to. Why do we get caught up in image and comparison? Is it because approval and admiration feel like love and acceptance? If so, it’s the great deception. Love is the deepest desire of every heart, and it’s the way God created us. That makes it the perfect design. We fall short of fulfilling that desire in our hearts when we try to find it in people or things. God alone is the complete fulfillment of every heart through a love that accepts us the way we are. 

When we allow God’s love to consume our hearts, everything pretending to be the love and acceptance we desire burns away. We begin to realize our infinite worth without any obligation to prove it. The proving was done by God through Jesus, and nothing else needs to be done. We’re free to be who we are, and no one on earth has the okay to not be okay with it. 

God’s love shows us the way to believe in ourselves, exercise our gifts, and discover our unique purpose. Outside His perfect love is where we get lost in the endless pursuit of acceptance on the people-pleasing carousel. It will never satisfy our souls, and it will have us feeling less-than-enough most of the time. God’s love for you is so complete, there’s never a need to compete. You’re valued beyond anything words can describe—and beyond the right of any person to decide. 

Dear God, Your love sets me free to be me! Help me to know my worth is in You alone and nothing else can fulfill the desires of my heart. 

This is an excerpt from The Campfire is Calling: 90 Warming Devotions for the Simple Life a devotional now available on DaySpring.com. Shop all books, journals, and devotions from DaySpring here.