Devotional: When Pleasing God Becomes the Only Goal
Most mornings you wake up with a list. Deadlines, people to call, problems left over from yesterday. And somewhere in the middle of all that motion, the day takes shape around what you need to get done rather than around who you belong to. That is not a moral failure. It is just how easily the urgent can crowd out the eternal.
Paul wrote 2 Corinthians 5:9 from a place of hard-won clarity. He said he made it his aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to God. The word “aim” in the original Greek is philotimeomai. It means to be driven by deep personal ambition. Paul was not describing passive obedience. He was describing a fierce, focused goal.
Here is what changes when pleasing God becomes your actual aim today. You stop asking only “Will this work?” and start asking “Will this honor Him?” That single shift reorganizes everything from your first conversation to your last decision before bed.
You do not have to be perfect to pray this prayer. You just have to mean it. Bring it honestly, and let Him build the rest of the day around what He approves.
Daily Prayer for June 27
Daily Spiritual Posture
Sit still for a moment before you read further. Release the list in your mind. You are not entering this prayer as someone who has everything together. You are entering as a child who wants to make their Father glad today.
Main Scripture
“Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him.” (2 Corinthians 5:9, NKJV)
Entering God’s Presence
Father, I come to You before this day gains any momentum. I set aside the noise and the pull of everything waiting on me. I enter Your presence not with a performance but with an open and willing heart.
You are worthy of my full attention and my best effort today. I acknowledge that every hour I am about to live belongs to You. I am here, Lord. Speak, and I will listen.
Prayer of the Day
Lord, I make it my goal today to please You in all things. Not some things. All things. I know that is a bold ask of a human heart, so I am asking You to make it possible from the inside out.
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight today (Psalm 19:14, NKJV). Where my motives drift toward self-promotion or self-protection, redirect me. Where I am tempted to take the easier path over the faithful one, steady me with Your Spirit.
I want to walk worthy of You, fully pleasing You, bearing fruit in every good work (Colossians 1:10, NKJV). Not so people will notice, but so You will be honored. Let that be enough for me today.
Teach me what pleases You in how I speak to the people I will face today. Teach me what pleases You in how I handle money, time, and influence. Let me not grieve Your Spirit (Ephesians 4:30, NKJV) through carelessness or pride. I want to live as a child of light, discerning what is acceptable to You (Ephesians 5:10, NKJV).
I trust that You who began a good work in me are still completing it (Philippians 1:6, NKJV). I offer You this day as an act of living worship (Romans 12:1, NKJV). In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Interceding for Others
Father, I lift up every person today who is exhausted from trying to please people instead of You. Free them from the fear of man and set their eyes on Your approval alone (Proverbs 29:25, NLT).
I pray for leaders, parents, and workers who carry influence. Let their decisions today be shaped by what honors You rather than what benefits them. Make them courageous and surrendered at the same time. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Personal Petition
Father, You know exactly where I am most tempted to live for the approval of others rather than for Yours. You see the specific relationships and situations where that pull is strongest today.
I ask You to realign my ambitions. Let my deepest drive not be recognition, comfort, or success, but simply this: to hear You say “well done” (Matthew 25:23, NKJV). That is the only verdict I want to chase today.
Give me the courage to choose what pleases You even when it costs me something. Let me do everything as unto You and not unto men (Colossians 3:23, NKJV). Where I have people-pleasing habits built into my daily routines, dismantle them gently and replace them with God-honoring ones.
I receive Your grace to walk this out imperfectly but sincerely. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Declarations and Affirmations
- I make it my aim today to be well pleasing to God in everything I do.
- My life is an offering, and I present it to God as an act of worship today.
- I am not driven by the approval of people; I am anchored in the approval of God.
- My words, choices, and motives are being aligned with what pleases the Lord.
- My goal is clear: to honor God with every hour I have been given today.
Powerful Prayer Points for Deeper Engagement
Move slowly through each prayer point below, allowing the Word to shape your prayer.
- Father, calibrate my ambitions today so that pleasing You outranks every other goal I carry into this day, in Jesus’ name. (2 Corinthians 5:9, NKJV)
- Father, expose and uproot every motive in me today that is rooted in the fear of man rather than the fear of You, in Jesus’ name. (Proverbs 29:25, NLT)
- Father, let my work today be done as unto You and not unto people, so that everything I touch carries the weight of worship, in Jesus’ name. (Colossians 3:23, NKJV)
- Father, give me a discerning heart today to recognize in real time what is and is not acceptable to You, and the courage to choose rightly, in Jesus’ name. (Ephesians 5:10, NKJV)
Wisdom for Deeper Understanding
Paul’s aim in 2 Corinthians 5:9 was not the aim of a passive believer hoping to avoid sin. It was the aim of someone who had decided in advance what the day was for. Pleasing God is not a feeling you wait to have. It is a decision you make before your feet hit the floor. When that decision is already settled, the hundred smaller decisions of the day have a center to orbit around. As Andrew Murray wrote, “The man who mobilizes the Christian church to pray will make the greatest contribution to world evangelization.” Prayer is where that central aim gets set.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know if I am actually pleasing God or just going through the motions?
The clearest indicator is motive, not performance. Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV) says that without faith it is impossible to please God, so the starting point is always trust rather than activity. Ask yourself honestly: am I doing this because I love Him, or because I fear how it will look. That honest question, brought to God in prayer, is itself an act of pleasing Him.
What do I do when I fail to please God partway through the day?
You return. First John 1:9 (NKJV) promises that if you confess your sins, He is faithful and just to forgive and cleanse you. A mid-day failure does not cancel the morning’s intention. Acknowledge it quickly, receive His forgiveness, and reset your aim. God is not keeping score; He is keeping the door open.
Final Encouragement
You started this day with one clear goal: to please God. That goal will not always feel glamorous. It will show up in small acts of faithfulness, patient words, and quiet integrity when no one is watching. But God sees every one of those moments, and every one of them matters to Him. Close this time in prayer tonight using the evening prayers at PrayerPrompt to finish the day the same way you began it, surrendered and seeking His face.
I declare that pleasing God is my highest aim today, and His grace empowers me to walk it out from this moment forward. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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My dear friend I don’t know, what I am doing wrong or what I’m doing right. After all that I have went through there’s no way possible that I’ve made it all this way for God to leave me this way. This January 2027 will make a completion of seven years in the desert wilderness and the fire, fire, the flood, the shaking the darkness, the torment, the pain, the hopelessness days that never seemed to have an end wave after wave. The two steps forward through the mud and the sand carrying what it seemed to be like a heavy soaked comforter or blanket with lead boots and heavy bones. Not to mention the endless warfare. Walking up a steep mountain on a razors edge with fire on the right and a steep cliff on the left , only to be pushed back 10 steps when I thought I was gaining altitude and momentum. Advice and encouragement, and wise council is great when it comes. But when you keep hearing this only is making you stronger, you are being prepared, you’re still here, rise up and push back. When you’re pushback is all gone. And you feel alone, not only in a crowd, but in your family of 30 years. And your alone in a separate wing in your house, being viciously attacked verbally assaulted pushed around. And nobody knows what you’re going through. Yes, I understand. God will never leave or forsake me. But it doesn’t make the situation when you are going through something any easier. And yes if I had to carry all of this alone, I would be compressed into a green of sand in two seconds. But when the confusion comes, and you don’t have a word to speak when you shut the door behind you, nobody even knows an ounce of what you’re going through . And trust me, I have tried years to explain the good things and the not so good things and people look at me like I have four heads. So I learned really quick to just shut my mouth and soldier on, or cry profusely. And then everyone looks at you and says when is this over, you’ve changed. I say hallelujah, but I miss laughter, smiling, or conversation. And breathing sometimes. It’s a little small things that are miracles and you miss the most. Connection. A lot of times it feels like I am an infant that I can’t speak of what is happening to me, while my abusers are burning me with cigarettes and bruising me in places that no one sees. I know what this sounds like. And yes, I have brought it up to my health professionals. But I 100% know this is a spiritual matter that definitely is impossible for man, but possible with God. And I have gotten advice from a lot of sources. When I tell them a little bit of my trials. I have received all kinds of advice that quite frankly, if I’m honest, seems offensive like in seven years do you think I haven’t done this. I think to myself. When they say, I just wanna be gentle with this situation, you need to be honest and tell everything to your health professional. This would take me years if I was to embellish every detail. And the most famous give it to God! OMG, if I had a dollar for every time, etc., etc., But the worst thing of all is the three children and wife. Most years do not say happy Father’s Day merry Christmas happy Thanksgiving happy birthday. I’ve had to sit with things that would’ve crushed 100 strong backs people. Emotionally physically mentally and spiritually. You reach points where you’re just burnt out and you cannot Even think of a prayer. And you give up several times a day. And there were definitely times I prayed like Elijah under the broom tree. I have lost count of the hold on for dear life moments. And even when I managed to get to sleep the horrific nightmares that feels so real that you’re worn out by the time you wake up and you try to just tell yourself or convince yourself to just put one foot on the floor. Saying to yourself let’s just get a cup of coffee and breathe with God in the silence. And yes, I believe God sees me get up, and sometimes I was helped up by his gentle hand when I couldn’t physically go anymore. And I believe I had times and moments when my tears fell like rain, and I felt him dry my eyes and white boy, the tears. There are times I believe he has wept with me. And I heard him choked up, holding a tear back saying my child I love you be kind to yourself. I won’t let you know. I am holding you. You are safe. I know it’s just been hard on you. We will get through this hand, hand heart to heart. Forget your age forget your name forget everything and just be small and I will just be your dad. And you my precious child.😔 you’re gonna make it. We will make it together🥹♥️ And then the beginning when I lost my mind, I heard the name, Moses in a gentle, but a thundering sound as I looked up at the skies in one of my vivid dreams. And the second night I went to sleep, and I heard the name Noah the same way I was looking up at the clouds and heard the gentle yet thundering Voice. A few days later I went and purchased a Bible. It was the king James. And I was having a hard time, even remembering where I lived, but yet the words flew off the pages days went by weeks, went by months went by as I was awaken and wrote in full detail and understanding of a pretty complicated version of the Bible, but yet it was like poetry as I would read, I was getting revelation, and I started to fill up notebooks. Everyone else was acting like I was obsessed. But I was trying to point to the miracle and I just wondered why nobody could see how I could not even write as much as my name And yet I went through the Bible three times and three months beginning to end gaining more revelation and wisdom. And then everything went very dark and confusing and yet every crushing blow or wave that has pursued me relentlessly 24 hours a day 365 and every time I think I’m catching a break And getting ahead, I get knocked down. I could not explain even if I wanted to the new answers and the pain and confusion that I am going through. And truthfully, I have brought this to Wise council and they said gently and kindly you need to go see a mental health professional, and your medical professional, and to tell them what you told us and be truthful. But truthfully, I know those consequences and I was relieved divinely off of 20+ medications not to just go back to all of them again and be some kind of lab specimen. And people just hear these growls And little voices coming out of my voice and the twitches which are very painful all through my face neck, chest down my arms into my fingers down in my toes legs into my bones and even into my mind, jaw tongue, lungs, and I have breathe and fire and I have been frozen. I have been stabbed. I’ve had to put my jaw back in place so many times I lost count. I’ve had brain pain so bad. The pressure alone was ridiculous and I get chest pain so bad that I was sure I would die so many times. I have smelled the most foul smells you could imagine. I took straight eucalyptus oil and put it inside of my nostrils and on my eyes and face, you would think that would burn but it was relief a little. I have been drained, feeble week, unable to leave my bed for days sometimes weeks. Sometimes I can only take a few steps because I’m in so much pain. And yet somebody comes to the door or I have to run an errand and I notice myself walking fine. But I have been stretched in my thresholds are through the roof when I tell somebody that somethings hurting, which is very rare I would even tell anybody. Then something must be really bad if I had to say something. I just keep looking forward and hoping that my breakthrough would come quickly and I don’t wanna miss it. But this negativity and heaviness and intrusive. Everything hits me And I start spiraling and so much is going on. You would think I would be frantic at the events happening inside me and around me, but my heart is at peace. Bless you so much daily Jesus devotional and all of my brothers and sisters in Christ in the name of Jesus. My thoughts are moving very slow my words sometimes don’t even come out and sometimes I’m not even breathing and yet I am still here glory to God amen.God is proud of the small things a simple gesture, a kind word to someone. Sometimes it’s bigger than the mountain moments. Because a small pebble striking the middle of a lake causes ripples to touch every shoreline. So let it be in your way of sending out a small prayer or opening a door for someone or donating a dollar when you’re at the shopping center when you yourself for watching every nickel dime and dollar carefully. When you lend a hand to someone. Sometimes just starting a new day and choosing to take one foot off the bed and put it on the floor. Or when somebody has hurt you or done something to you instead of you reareacting and giving that person a piece of your mind and instead you either refrain from doing it or offer a kind word or a silent prayer. Or when you have every reason to give up and it takes you everything to just get started God calls that very precious and special.🖊️🕊️🕊️🕊️
You have heard the old adage or saying “ one man’s trash is another man’s treasure!”Amen” This world, which tried to make me as trash. God will make me as fine treasure , priceless Jewelry to reflect his image and his love and glory, amen😔♥️🕊️🕊️🕊️🖊️
Me, my wife, nadine my three children or young adults Joshua , Noah , and Kaley Noel🖊️
My dear brother, thank you for sharing your heart so honestly. I may not fully understand the depth of the road you’ve walked, but Jesus does. He has seen every tear, every sleepless night, every moment you felt too exhausted to pray, and every quiet act of faith that no one else noticed. What encourages me most is not the intensity of your suffering, but that after seven difficult years you are still looking to Christ. That is evidence of His grace holding you even when you felt you could not hold on to Him. Keep staying close to Jesus, continue receiving wise care from both trusted Christian believers and your healthcare professionals, and don’t measure God’s presence by how heavy today feels. The Lord who carried Moses through the wilderness, preserved Noah through the flood, and met Elijah under the broom tree has not forgotten you. *”He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus”* (Philippians 1:6). May the God of all grace strengthen you, comfort Nadine, Joshua, Noah, and Kaley Noel, and continue leading your family one faithful step at a time. Your story is not finished, and neither is God’s work in your life.
Amen and Amen 🙏
amen 🙏
Amen
Thank you Jesus
I declare today divine helpers are locating me and lifting my vision… In the Mighty Name of Jesus… Amen and Amen 🙏
Hallelujah Jesus. To God be the Glory
Amen Amen Amen
Amen and Amen, Thank you Lord Jesus
Thanks be to the one true Kings of Kings, Lord of Lords, Jesus Christ my glorious Father, Amen.
Father praise be unto you. Thank you for being the most perfect and caring Creator of all. We are soo blessed to be your children for you love us perfectly and unconditionally throughout everything and you never leave us. Thank you for this Jesus. Praise be unto you always and forever. You are our most perfect provider and I thank you for every door that opens in your name. I pray and believe that every breakthrough shall reflect forward upon thy family and brothers and sisters who are in need. Thank you my Father, Amen.