Day 21: Be You Be True

Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.

I John 3:18

We can spend our whole lives trying to be good enough for those who don’t love us and fail miserably both at gaining their approval and enjoying life.  Be your authentic self.  Don’t waste energy trying to please others.  Instead seek to please our Father in heaven.

As a musician I have listened to advice in many workshops about creating a following through social media.  The goal being that you should have enough fans that you can make a living off of.  But I started thinking more deeply about this.  I spoke with a church leader who was overwhelmed by all the people who wanted to be her friend on Facebook.  She felt that people should understand that she doesn’t have time to connect with everyone she meets in her travels.

When we develop hundreds and thousands of followers do we seek to make the interaction mutually beneficial?  Are they getting to know who we really are or who we think they will be interested in following?  When do we have enough friends or followers?  And are we in our thirst for more notoriety failing to minister to the ones God has already given us access to?  Do our marriages suffer due to our lust for fame?  Do our children feel less important because we don’t have time for them because we have to make another post?

Today I will be authentic and will do one thing to show how I value my primary relationships.  I will stop creating fake versions of me to please fake friends.