An Audience of One

     Practically anyone would agree that we are born with a innate desire to be accepted by others. As small children we constantly seek the approval of our parents through everything we do, even if we do not entirely understand what they find acceptable behavior--but that doesn’t stop us from trying, now does it? When we become a little older, our peers become another audience from whom we feel that we must earn respect.

     Personally, I feel the pressure to perform for my parents, my peers, and people in general. My parents have raised me with somewhat high expectations, and they have instilled in me an attitude of excellence. Because of this I feel as though I must make them proud by excelling at absolutely everything I do. While this is, in fact, impossible to do, I still have the drive to live up to their standards. For friends and colleagues I feel as though I must prove my worth through academic prowess and intellectual adeptness. As for everyone else, I feel inclined to show them that I can do anything expected of me.

     Mindsets such a this are proof that many of us have taken our focus from the one  audience that truly matters: God. In our attempts to keep treading water in the face of the overwhelming flood of schoolwork and other extra-curricular commitments and please others while doing so, we often forget how to refocus our eyes on God. In order to do this, we must make a concerted effort to put Him first in all that we do, even if it seems as though we may suffer imperfections in our work, social life, etc. If we can make sure to be in the habit of not only reading God’s Word but acting upon it on a daily basis, then may more easily keep ourselves aligned with God’s Will. Our Audience of One is, in the long run, much less stressful and much less disappointing for whom to perform.