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Lord Jesus, every person is Your gift to me, and every friend is a treasure. I am a weak human person. I need to be appreciated. I need to be told that I am loved. I need to be reminded that I am good. I need a word of gratitude, a word of consolation, a word of encouragement. I am only human.
I need to be told that I am valuable. I am afraid to be taken for granted. I am afraid of being forgotten. I am discouraged when I do a good deed and do not get a word of thanks in return. I become confused after I have done something good and people still find fault with me.
Lord, look on my desire to be appreciated. Look with mercy on my desire to be valued. Look with tenderness and compassion on my need to be liked, to be loved. Lord, fulfill that need for me. Fulfill my need to be liked. Tell me, Lord, that I am valuable to You. Tell me, Lord, that You are willing to give me a chance, in spite of my mistakes. Tell me, Lord, that You are willing to forgive me even before I ask for it. Tell me, Lord, that what I have done is important to You. Tell me, Lord, that You love me.
Lord, I sought approval from my friends. I sought approval from my co-workers. I sought recognition from church leaders. I expected gratitude from people I served. But I was disappointed. I felt they did not thank me enough. I felt they did not understand enough my sacrifices. I felt shy and not appreciated enough for my efforts. But You know, Lord. You know everything. You understand everything. Your appreciation is complete.
Lord, I thus lift up to You the children who have to meet the high standards set for them by their parents, by society. Help them to discover You as the only standard, as the only friend to please. I lift up to You the children who are so conscious about, and obsessed with getting high grades, good performance in school, that they fail to discover the simple joy that comes with playing a game, walking in the rain, petting a dog and being with a friend. Lord, do not deprive these children of these joys of childhood.
I lift up to You the teenagers, the young people who succumb to peer pressure and then do things against Your will. Teenagers who try drugs, alcohol and sex for “pakikisama.” Lord, do not allow this to happen. Enlighten these young people, so precious in Your sight. Do not let them be carried away by the empty pleasures promised by thrilling pursuits. Make them patient, make them strong, as they pass through the rough period of adolescence. Make them see the happiness that comes with pleasing You, only You.
I lift up to You the young professionals driven by success, driven by the obsession to make millions to buy houses and cars. I lift up to You these young professionals who are so obsessed with high salaries, with recognition in the office, with appreciation by society. Lord, You are our only treasure and happiness; not high salaries, not beauty and popularity, not power, but You.
I lift up to you myself, with my flagging hopes, my shattered dreams because I sought to please others rather than You. Help me to relax, to slow down, to ease up on this fast-pace life, and find rest in You. When I look at You, I discover how easy it is to please You and yet, I have chosen to please human beings who seem impossible to please. It is easy to be appreciated by You and yet, I have sought appreciation from friends who are never content, who somehow still find faults.
I will please You, Lord. You are my only judge, Lord. You understand everything. What people cannot see, You see. What people cannot understand, You understand. Help me find peace and joy in You, only in You, always.
IT’S HARD TO PLEASE THEM
