More often than not the biggest obstacle to obeying God is our fear of what others think!

Matthew 1:18-19 NIV
This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

More often than not the biggest obstacle to obeying God is our fear of what others think!

Matthew 1:20-21
But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

4 Statements To Help You Overcome:

If I’m obsessed with what people think of me, I’ll never believe what God says about me!

If I believe what God says about me, I won’t care what people think of me!

If you’re not willing to be criticized for your obedience to God, you’re not ready to be used by God.

Extraordinary acts of God most often start with Ordinary acts of obedience.

Matthew 1:24 NIV
When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.

We as a society have become obsessed with what other people think about us:

Do you like my car (spend $600 a month I can’t afford so people I don’t know will think I’m cool)

Do you like my clothes

Do you like my selfie?

In fact, social media as a whole is completely built off of this desire to get people to like us…literally with a button that says ‘Like’

Most liked photos of Instagram:

The Rock Picture

Friends Picture

Stormie Picture

Egg Picture (Chris Godfrey, tired of all of the hype and the pressure of social media…the egg is just an egg…we call him Euguen!)

Take That Picture

Now, the story we are looking at today is the account of the birth of Jesus Christ, or at least the beginning of it. And, although this took place 2,000 years ago, people haven’t changed. The pressure to fit in and be liked was just as potent then as it was today, and in some ways more so because society was so localized, everyone knew everyone and talked to everyone. So if you got a bad name…it was devastating

It’s always amazed me that the minute any of us start trying to do what God wants other people start telling you what they think about it.

Some people will be threatened by your willingness to follow God

Others will ridicule your obedience and call you brainwashed, Mr. Spiritual, Miss Religious

Until you are okay taking criticism you won’t be able to be used greatly by God. Not one person who has done anything great for God ever got the popular vote!

Noah was mocked

Moses was undermined

Abraham was attacked

Paul was beaten

Jesus was crucified…

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