Are you a people pleaser? Are you someone that cares what other people think about you? Or are you someone that seeks to please the Lord and strives to only care about what He thinks of you?
I confess, I am a people pleaser.
It has recently been revealed to me, with the Lord's help, that I am a people pleaser. I work hard at something just to make someone else happy. I even go as far as to change what I am thinking and feeling in order to make someone else happy.
Then, after all my people pleasing work. After all of the time spent negating my thoughts and feelings. Something doesn't work out right. The other person still is not pleased with me or my efforts. Then, I am crushed.
On the other hand, there is the side of me that really cares what you think of me. I will even change my needs and my wants if it makes you like me a little bit more.
I am even known to be someone that allows what others think or say make me second guess and/or doubt myself. I have seen this quality in myself for a while.
However, the Lord is revealing things to me.
Ok, I have brought all of this up for a reason. I recently went through something and now the Lord is revealing things to me.
I just had my annual gynecologist visit. This visit was for a pap test and it was excruciatingly painful. (Just one of the perks of being post menopausal ). Once everything was over, I sat up and my doctor told me that I could get dressed. I then asked her for a wet cloth because I didn't feel well at all.
She brought me the cloth and I laid back down. Once the dizziness eased, I sat up, but had to lay back down again. Then the dizziness eased, I sat up again and just waited. Once I felt like I could manage things, I walked over and attempted to get dressed.
I did not get far in my efforts when I realized that I was about to pass out. So I sat down on the bench and pressed myself against the wall. The next thing I knew someone was yelling at me from a distance. It took several minutes for me to really be able to focus. My gynecologist sent me to the er. My bloodwork came back normal and I was told that it might be psychological. The sad part of that, is after T chimed in with his agreement, I started to think, "well maybe it is psychological."
What is Secondary Adrenal Insufficiency?
So what caused me to pass out? Good question. I apparently could not explain things very well OR nobody would listen to me.
I have Secondary Adrenal Insufficiency . This means that I have a tumor on my pituitary gland. My pituitary gland (which usually produces all of these hormones) does not function right any more. My adrenal glands have shut down. My body no longer produces cortisol which is needed during stress producing situations.
The excruciating pain from my pap test caused a lot of stress to my body. It caused so much stress that a normal person would have managed ok because of cortisol, but my body doesn't produce cortisol anymore.
So what does my body do in stressful situations like this? It does the only thing that it can do. It shuts down. And that means, I pass out.
I am fine. It was so scary, yes. But I am fine.
Now that I am beyond this, I keep playing it all over and over in my mind. I sit in my prayer closet crying and praying over things and He is working on me.
It is through His help and guidance that I have been able to see how I am a people pleaser and how I care about what other people think of me.
3 Things The Lord is Showing Me
1. He is showing me that I do not have to change my thoughts and feelings. Why? Because I matter ( Psalm 139:13-16).
2. He is showing me that I do not have to negate what I want or what I need. Why? Because I am important (Ephesians 1:5).
3. He is showing me that I no longer need to question myself or second guess myself. Why? Because He is with me (Matthew 28:20).
The Lord is working on me. I am learning to turn to Him with all of my thoughts, feelings, wants and needs. When I start to question myself or doubt myself in any way, I am learning to seek His guidance. I only need to please One person. I only need to care about what One person thinks about me. His name is Jesus.
Romans 12:2 NIV
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
4 Tips About Pleasing God
1. I need to stop trying so hard to conform to the pattern of the world.
2. I need to stop worrying so much about what others think about me or about trying to please others.
3. Instead, my efforts should be focused on God.
4. I need to be transformed into pleasing Him and only caring about what He
thinks.
Your turn:
Are you a people pleaser?
Do you worry about what others think about you?
Do you seek to please the Lord?
Do you strive to only care about what He thinks of you?
Prayer:
Father in heaven, my Immanuel, Jehovah Jireh, creator of the heavens and the earth, nothing is too hard for You. Father, I thank You for gently working on me and revealing things to me that I need to work on, in my life. I know that I do not need to conform to the pattern of the world. I do not need to conform to what others think about me or what may or may not please them. Instead, I need to be transformed by the renewing of my mind. I need to focus more on pleasing You. (Romans 12:2). Please help me in my efforts. Thank You for all that You do. In Jesus' name, Amen.
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Ps. I am including 2 free printables for you. One of them is a 30 Day Bible Reading/Writing Plan called Who I Am in Christ. The second one is a coloring page.
I would like to encourage you to print out the coloring page, color it, and hang it somewhere that you will see it every day. Then, as you work through the Who I Am in Christ Bible Reading Plan , you can pick your favorites, write them down (on post it notes, maybe) and place them around your "I Am" coloring page.
Blessings,
Leigha
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