Chaplains Corner
Recalibration
Who are you trying to please? What are your motivations, truly?
This week, take some time to sit with these questions and be honest with yourself. Ask them for your day to day interactions, and also for your bigger goals and focuses.
What did you find out?
Are you still on the original track you intended, for the reasons you intended, or have you veered off course in your motivations?
Is there any part of what you’re doing that is just to please people, whether it’s a certain person or group, or approval, recognition, or acclaim/clout in general?
Are your actions reflecting what your motivations are and who you want to be, or are they telling a different story?
Sometimes we start or do things with good intentions and noble motivations, not for the approval or recognition of people, but we get lost in the process. In a culture that glorifies being in the spotlight, being “important”, being liked, having followers, virtue signaling, influence, favorable appearance to the public, and doing what others or popular culture say is right, it’s no surprise that we can look back at times and wonder how our situation, our actions, our motivations, and what our life is reflecting about our hearts changed, and not in the way we wanted.
There’s a verse in Galatians that I reflect on frequently to determine where my heart is:
“For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.”
Galatians 1:10 ESV
If you are not sure where your heart is, what your motivations are, or if you’re people pleasing or acclaim seeking in some way, pray about it. Ask God to show you. Sometimes we don’t even see or realize, and need His help to show us. God can reveal to us if there’s any area like this in our lives. Even if you do see some things on your own, pray about it. He may reveal more to you.
Even the highest quality items, most efficient or productive systems, and full industries need to be recalibrated. And that goes for our own lives and relationships, too. A small thing can become so much bigger, or a small veering off course can go a completely different direction (I’m sure many of us have seen this in land nav!), if we don’t ever examine and recalibrate.
Recalibration is not failure; it is the process that fine tunes something to be the best it can be.
This week, if you find you’ve come out of alignment with your true motivations, if you’ve begun to do things for the approval, recognition, or praise of others, or if your actions are not aligning with what you intended to be, know that it’s not too late to course correct. You can focus your eyes and heart on your original motivations and do things in a way that reflect that. You can recalibrate to be back in alignment with your pure motivation and who you were called to be.
Prayer:
God, I come to you today and ask you to examine my heart. What are my motivations? Who am I seeking to please? What do my actions say about me? If anything is out of alignment or not pure, please recalibrate me. Renew me, restore me, to who I am called to be. Correct my course to be in perfect alignment with Your will and way. Help me to live out the purposes you have for me and not be motivated or directed by any sort of people pleasing or recognition seeking. Help me to be humble and pure in all my ways. Let my actions and ways be a reflection of pure motivations and your work and presence in my life. Strengthen me and open my eyes to not be moved by people pleasing, recognition, or unpure motives- even if they do not appear to be bad. Thank you for the work you are doing in me. I pray that you continue to recalibrate me even when I don’t know I need it. In your precious and powerful name I pray, amen.
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If anyone wants to pray together let us know. You could have a need you want prayer for, or we can be praying for overall needs, our post, our leaders, our city, etc. or all of it. Prayer is good for all of it! God hears!
You can submit a prayer request here with as much info as you’re comfortable with: https://form.jotform.com/ChaplainAL43/prayerrequest
You can also reach out directly to chaplain@post43.org if you'd rather do that.
What would you like the chaplains to offer at the post? We would love to hear what would help you all!
Praying for each of you, for our leadership, and for us as a community. May God make His presence known in your personal lives, in our post, and in our community, and may His shalom, love, and joy be felt in ways like never before. May He heal and protect you mentally, physically, spiritually, and emotionally. I pray for God’s revival in each person and for us as a community. In His mighty, precious, and unmatched Name we pray.
“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.”
Numbers 6:24-26
Blessings and Gratitude,
Donna Callaway, Chaplain