Resource Friday: Pleasing People

Obviously, I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant.”

– Galatians 1:10 (NLT)

Being a people pleaser is something most people struggle with in one way or another. People pleasing can be a trap that entices its victims to grasp desperately for something other than God. We want the praise, attention, and acceptance of our peers, so we avoid any and all conflict, act differently around different people, etc. The problem is that when we are in the frame of mind to please people, we are focused on ourselves, and tend to leave God out of the picture.

In this week’s Resource Friday, we would like to introduce you to another great, convicting book that many of our counselors use here at Vision of Hope entitled “Pleasing People” by Lou Priolo.

Pleasing People is a fantastic resource that truly gets at the heart of the problem of being a people pleaser. There are two parts to this book, the first of which draws the focus to our problem. Priolo takes his readers through a list of convicting characteristics of a people pleaser, getting to the heart of what we are truly desiring in these instances. Allow me to list just a few of these convicting characteristics:

  • He fears the displeasure of man more than the displeasure of God
  • He desires the praise of man above the praise of God
  • He is oversensitive to correction, reproof, and other allusions of dissatisfaction or disapproval on the part of others
  • He invests more of his personal resources in establishing his own honor than he does in establishing God’s honor

 

Are you convicted yet? I know I am, as well as many others here at VOH who have had the opportunity to dig deeply into the pages of this book.

But, there is hope! Part Two of this book highlights God’s solution. In this section, Priolo outlines the characteristics of a God pleaser, and explains how one can become freed from the slavery of always striving to please people, and instead become totally focused on pleasing their Savior. A few of these encouraging characteristics are as follows:

  • He realizes that he cannot please God apart from being a Christian
  • He studies scripture to understand exactly how to please God
  • When he pleases people, he does so out of loving motives, not selfish ones
  • He is more concerned with what God sees in his heart, than what man sees in his appearance

 

We at VOH would highly recommend this resource to any believer who would like to get out of the trap of people pleasing and learn how to be more focused on pleasing God. If you are interested in purchasing this awesome resource, you can get it here.

Bethany Dunn
Bethany heard about Vision of Hope while attending Word of Life Bible Institute in Florida. When she began praying about what God wanted her to do after graduating, He kept bringing Vision of Hope to her mind. Knowing that there was an internship available, Bethany applied, was accepted, and began her internship with VOH in July, 2012. Since then she has been amazed at the opportunities God has given her to learn more about His Word and how it applies to everyday life. Bethany now serves on staff at Vision of Hope.