[3 min read—client resource]
We learn about relationships, both with God and others, in our home of origin. Our home of origin is where we learn about emotions, thoughts and behavior in us and in our family. So what did you learn? Was your home a place of safety, where it was safe to have and acknowledge emotions and thoughts about self and others or was it a place of fear, where you had to put aside your thoughts and feelings to placate an immature or emotionally volatile parent?
Sadly, if we grew up in an unsafe environment, our emotional and often physical safety depended upon us being hyperaware of the people in our family so we could stay safe and survive. As we grow into adults, so too does that hyper-focus on people which manifests into people pleasing above even self or God. God knows our struggle with people pleasing and seeks to free us from the power we give others by reminding us of His power that is greater and safer. Psalm 146 reveals the clear contrast between trusting people or trusting God.
Trusting People Leads to Futility
The psalmist starts by worshipping God in His soul and commits to praising Him all his life (v.1-2). In his worship the psalmist then recognizes the futility of people pleasing in specific ways: a) they cannot save themselves- even princes- or you; and b) they will die, return to dust, and so will their plans. The psalmist means for the reader here to specifically remember God created man out of dust and he will return there (Genesis 3:19).
This specific description of man is meant to highlight the futility of giving another person power over us or desiring their approval. They are just like us and can’t give us what we really want–which is safety and salvation.
Trusting God Leads to Happiness and Safety
The psalmist reinforces this view by reminding us that in fact “happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob and whose hope is in the Lord their God” (v. 5). The psalmist then seeks to remind us who God is and why we are happy in Him: He is the “God of Jacob who helps us” (v. 5a), the “Lord their God” (v.5b), “Maker of heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them” (v.6a), “faithful forever” (v. 6c).
Only after the psalmist reminds us who He is, then he reminds us of how God acts on our behalf: the oppressed are defended and the hungry fed (v.7), prisoners are set free, He gives sight to the blind and lifts up those who are bowed down and He loves the righteous (v.8). Finally, “He watches over the foreigner and sustains the fatherless and widow but he frustrates the ways of the wicked” (v9).
When we grow up in an environment of fear, it seems wise to focus on people pleasing for continued safety as adults. After all it was people who harmed us. Yet the Lord God seeks to break that bondage by pointing out the everlasting benefits of trusting the Lord who has and will continue to free the oppressed (us) from slavery and lead them (us) to happiness and safety.