I admit it. I don’t know much about cars. Oh sure, I know about the normal stuff like oil changes and windshield wiper fluid. But the big stuff like transmissions and air filters or radiators? Nope – not a clue. That’s why I signed up for a AAA membership many years ago. Its roadside assistance service has saved my stranded self a time or two paying for itself many times over.
In addition to their roadside assistance, AAA has a complete line of other services that can save you money on travel, financial products and even movie tickets. You might be saying to yourself about now, “Ok. Ok Jen. I get it. You like AAA.”
Well, I do like this AAA but not the one I’m going to speak of today. Recently I read a blog post about another AAA – attention, acceptance and affirmation. This is the one I’d like to cancel my membership to and encourage you to do so as well.
When I changed the focus of my postings to reflect my spiritual journey, I did not do so to become popular or get more fans on social media. In fact, I was seriously concerned that my readership would take a nose dive after I made the announcement. Let’s face it, talking about God can make some people uncomfortable.
The truth is – I did lose some subscribers. Was it monumental? No – not at all. But I’d be lying if I said seeing my total subscriber list decrease didn’t sting a bit. We all want to be liked – to have our passion embraced by the masses, right? Think about your favorite actor or singer. They’d be nowhere without their fans.
I knew that I’d better toughen up if I was going to continue along this journey. I would have to get to a place where seeing someone unsubscribe or send an unflattering email wouldn’t bother me. An even bigger challenge would be to not even look at the statistics, tempting as it is. I would need to come to a place of peace knowing that the words I share are from my heart and there will be people who embrace them and others for which they rub the wrong way.
In short, I’d need to let go of the need for people’s approval and acceptance of me. Eeks. This would be no easy feat and a challenge that I’d have to face on a daily basis unless I planned to barricade myself in my house for my remaining time on earth.
Being popular was never one of the words I used to describe myself throughout my life. I was the smart girl in school, not the pretty one who got all the boys. I nearly always had the dissenting opinion or idea at my various jobs as I strived to do things the right way, not the fast way. I’m definitely not the cool mom, so I’m not even popular with my kids at times. So it’s not like I was used to being popular and now would have to give it up.
As I study the life of Jesus in my daily Bible reading, I’m coming to understand that He was not the popular guy either. In fact, He was about as unpopular as they come. The difference was that He didn’t care. He did not base his self-worth on how many fans He was able to pick up on his journey nor how many people invited Him to dinner. Nope. His self-worth, his feelings of acceptance came from a much bigger place.
He knew He had a double thumbs up from his Father in heaven so what people said or did to him was inconsequential. While I’ve no clue if the words and actions of the people of His day stung Him like my pitiful unsubscribe list, I do believe that it hurts Him now to see people reject Him and all He did for us.
Jesus didn’t have to cancel his AAA membership because He was never a member. He never once questioned His worth or value while He walked the earth. He came into this world knowing exactly who He was. He never walked around saying to himself, “What am I doing here or what is my purpose?” like so many of us do. He didn’t have a mid-life crisis and even though He wasn’t alive long enough to experience this, my guess is that He’d likely skip this human experience knowing that He was firmly rooted in who He was.
Recently I sent out a survey to my subscribers to find out what they liked or didn’t like about my posts. While I’m still evaluating the results and what to do with them, the response was overwhelmingly positive. Did this bring a smile to my face? Well, sure it did. But here’s the kicker.
Even if the opposite occurred, I’d be ok. Why? Because I know that what I’m doing is what God has put on my heart to do. I know that my love of writing and my love for God is what I’m here to share. And even if I lose fans and only one person reads my posts, I’m good.
So I’ll keep my AAA membership for my car but I’m cancelling the other one. I’d like to encourage you to consider taking a baby step towards cancelling yours knowing that your worth and value do not come from others but from a God who loves you more than you can fathom.
And guess what? His name will never be on your unsubscribe list.
And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39)