Audience of One

So many of us are driven by approval. We seek acceptance from our peers, our parents, our clients ... even complete strangers. However, acceptance is but a fleeting thing. Like a fist full of sand, the tighter we squeeze, the more slips through our fingers. And, eventually, the quest thereof will often lead us into becoming people we had never intended to be. Furthermore, at the end of the day-certainly at the end of our lives, there will be only one opinion that matters. For the holy God, who sees all things, will meet each man and woman at the end of this life and judge that life. To some, He will proclaim, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” Others, I fear, will not fare so well. So in the big picture, only one opinion matters. True, life is a spectator sport, but we really only have one spectator who to accommodate ... and He is an audience of One. If we choose to live our lives with that perspective, everything else tends to fall into place. To that end, I offer the following poem. It was originally written with teenagers in mind. However, it appears to apply to all of us ... perhaps even more than we would care to admit.

Audience of One

We all long to have approval
Yet, if acceptance is our aim
Undoubtedly, the time will come
When we can’t win such a game
For a woman or a man of faith
Whose character is sound
Soon discovers that he has to choose
At times, to stand his ground
The world will seek to sway him
From the way he knows is true
And within the crowd, the voice
Of friends will beckon to him too
Indeed, the burden of acceptance
Can be the greatest cross we bear
For we desire to gain approval
From the ones who claim they care
The very ones who seek to draw us
To the brink of compromise
And since we long so for approval
We’re tempted to believe their lies
Yet, he who understands the truth
And the great things God has done
Understands he need not please the crowd
He has but an audience of One
A peer group changes year to year
And friends may come and go
So their approval matters little
And time will surely prove it so
Rather, let us seek approval
From the One who knows us best
Who loves us and accepts us
Though we’re abandoned by the rest
The One who honors those who choose
To stand for what is right
There is wisdom in His quiet voice
And the strength to fight the fight
We long to be accepted
Yet, when all is said and done
The crowd will drift away and leave
An audience of One

By Frank Carpenter ©