Sit Up and Take Notice

So, lately I have been "encouraging" Gideon to sit on his own - as in, pushing him into a sitting position and holding him there to see if he will balance. Instead, he always actively pushes back against my hand, trying to lie down flat on the floor. Today, we were with a group of moms and young kids, and all the kids a few months older than Gideon were crawling/walking around and playing together. Wouldn't you know, I set Gideon down in the usual sitting position, AND HE STAYED THERE. I'm pretty sure this was a, "Hey. I'm big. I can play, too," kind of moment. No need to show off for Mom; I'm going to play with him anyway. But the other kids? He definately sat up and took notice. Who knew my seven month old son would (seemingly) demonstrate a desire to fit in? Does it really start that young?!

After a moment to ponder, I realized, OF COURSE it does. We are, after all, beings created in the image of a relational three-persons-in-perfect-unity-as-one-God. Of course we want to be in relationship other people. It is a great thing, as long as we get the desire to impress right. In the words of the apostle Paul (regarding his preaching of the gospel), "we did not seek to please men but God." Great stuff. It made me wonder:

Am I sitting up and taking notice, looking for deep relationships? And in those relationships, who am I ultimately seeking to please? Hm...