Day 2503 of the 7 day Bible verse challenge.
Colossians 3:23 NIV
This verse has become something that I remind myself of almost daily. We've been talking about doubt for a few days now and to be honest, I can't count how many times I've doubted these posts. Am I doing the right thing? Am I putting too much of myself in there? Am I taking things out of context? Am I doing the best I can to help reach as many as possible? Am I even making a difference at all?
That's the dangerous thing about doubt. It only lets us consider the negative side of things. It only allows us to consider the worst possible scenarios and outcomes. It tells us that what we do doesn't matter and can't possibly make a difference. It convinces us that anything we try will only end in failure. It leads us to those all too familiar thoughts of just giving up, avoiding the hassle, and accepting defeat.
One of the biggest problems is that we're all used to running on feedback. We want to see a return on our investments. We want to see the likes and followers increase on social media. We want to get those pats on the back that tell us we're doing a good job. We desire that praise and appreciation as we've learned to find evidence of our success and impact within them. But in reality, that's all just superficial. It's the icing on the cake as they say.
The cake itself is the internal knowledge that we're doing what God has put on our hearts to do. That's the only feedback we need. Knowing that we're trying. Knowing that we're all in and giving it everything we have. Knowing that no matter the external gratification we receive, that we're doing something for the right reasons. All this other stuff doesn't matter in light of those things. All this social feedback and worldly approval mean nothing. We don't need them to tell us that we're trying. We should know that inside.
Whatever we do we have to do it for the Lord. Let’s just be honest: The majority of this world doesn't really care about anything we do. There are so many who will never agree with our faith or anything that we do because of it. Our society has become so mean and nasty that our kindness and compassion are very likely to be overlooked if they're even noticed at all. We're trying to do good in a place where the odds are perpetually stacked against us. So if we're looking for approval or positive encouragement for following Christ in a place that isn't, we're delusional.
We have to stop being distracted by things that don’t matter. We could add up every single like and comment on our posts that we ever receive and it still won't matter when we're standing before God. We could alter our approach to make it more attractive to this place but doing so will only take the meaning out of it. We can't risk diluting our purpose in order to gain the peer approval that we think we need. This place is messed up, so if the world likes us then we’re doing something wrong!
We have to remember that we're here to serve God. Not ourselves. Not other people. God and God alone. If we get lost in the numbers or consumed with the need for constant feedback then it doesn’t matter what we do, we're doing it for the wrong reasons. All of that superficial stuff will come and go and constantly be a distraction that quickly leads to doubt. Am I doing enough? Am I doing it right? What could I do to get more attention? It all just takes our focus off of what really matters.
We can't allow this doubt that we're making a difference to keep us from trying. Doing so will only cause us to miss opportunities to make the impact that God will make through our willingness. We may not see the results of our efforts in this life. We may not gain the popularity and success that we think we need to be important. All we need to be important is to do what God calls us to do and do it will all our hearts. He is going to use whatever we do for Him to make the impact He needs it to make. Don’t do anything for any reason other than fulfilling what He has put on your heart. He put it there for a reason!
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