Don’t Hold A Press Conference
We all like to be noticed. We all like to be recognized for doing something good. We like to hear people say, “Good job.” We want the praise of man. I think this is a normal human desire.
The other day, I was reading in Matthew 6 which is part of the Sermon on the Mount given by Jesus. In part of this sermon, Jesus talks about how we should give to the needy, how we should pray, and how we should go about fasting. Three times in this passage Christ says, “Then your Father who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” When we give to the needy, when we pray, and when we fast, we should do these acts so no one knows but God. We want the recognition. We want to hold a press conference when we do these things. But Christ tells us to keep it between God and us. Surely, God’s reward is far greater than any recognition we get from man.
As a blogger this is a huge topic to ponder. I often blog about the activities of my family including the activities related to serving others. I hope that my main motivation in sharing these things is to encourage others to find ways to serve with their families, but I confess that there may be a part of my motivation that wants to hear others say, “Your family is so good. You are a great parent. You and Leanne do such a great job.” These compliments do mean a lot, but my suspicion is that these praises of people pale in comparison to the reward that God promises.
Ultimately, I want to glorify God. Whether it’s giving to the needy, praying, fasting, working, running, blogging, or whatever, I want my thoughts and actions to bring glory to God.
And so I stretch! (In a year of being transformed, transformation of my motives is a great place to start.)
What do you think? Do you struggle with seeking the praise of people? How do you fight this?
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About
You might be wondering where the “Stretched” thing comes from. For starters, when I was in high school at Rancocas Valley Regional High School, I was short – 5’6″ to start my junior year. Since then, I’ve grown to almost 6’6″. Many of my friends started calling me Stretch.
On a more recent basis, I often feel “stretched” by all the things going on around me – career, marriage, parenting, church, running, reading, friendships, extended family, relationship with God, etc. (in no particular order). My hope is that this blog will provide an opportunity to express some of my “stretch marks” and to possibly hear your thoughts as well. 
So here is a bit more about me: I’m a Christ-follower, husband, dad, son, uncle, engineer, runner, chicken farmer, gardener, saxophone player, operations manager, adventurer, and the list goes on…. I’m extremely blessed to have the best wife in the whole world. We met at Grove City College. We were engaged on top of the Eiffel Tower. We got married in Greensburg, PA. Now, we live in Schwenksville, PA with our two incredible kids, and our black lab.
I am a natural extrovert Jon. I struggled a lot with wanting to be noticed, liked, and given credit. I know that is still in me but i do try hard to make sure my motives are pure. I don’t always succeed but I know God is transforming me into His image (therefore, I want to glorify Him and bring fame to His Name).
Well said, Bill.
Jon, I love attention. It’s tough for me to sit in the background.
Me too.
Yes, I do! I actually wrote about this same thing recently in a post called Stop Doing Your Own PR. Here’s the post: http://wp.me/p12mkt-gF. A helpful way to check yourself is to ask “why.” Why am I tweeting this? Why am I writing this?
Thanks for sharing the link. Your post definitely fits well with mine.
coming from a song writer…it’s difficult to balance the 2. the praise of man and the humbleness of God…
coming from an engineer…it’s difficult to balance the 2 also.
Pride runs neck and neck as one of my top repetitive sins. As a shy kid, an introverted thinker, etc. I kept myself out of the limelight. That is until someone told me, “You know, you can stand in a room and not say anything, but with your size you will not go unnoticed.” That scared me. So I focused more on doing ‘the right thing’ and I truly liked when others noticed, and felt like I needed the compliments for my self-esteem.
Then I became a Christian.
“Surely, God’s reward is far greater than any recognition we get from man.” Nuff said.
- Stretch Mark
Thanks for stopping by, Stretch Mark. Your two cents is extremely valuable.
Great stuff here. I totally agree with it all! It is better to keep your prayer life and stuff like that with God only because He can reward you in heaven.
I don’t want to receive my reward down here…
Surely, God’s reward is far greater than any recognition we get from man.
That is one of my favorite lines of this post!
Thanks, Brandon. (Looking forward to your post tomorrow.)
Do I seek the approval of others? Yes. I have to remind myself of Gal 1:10 often because I am a natural people-pleaser… A go-out-of-my-way-type of people-pleaser…
“Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.” Gal. 1:10
Jon, great post. Honestly that is exactly what has kept me from posting things like the last thing I wrote on my blog. Finally I realized it was just as much about pride to keep it to myself. Ultimately you can never control what others think of you, so you just have to live your life in obedience to what God is telling you. I am grateful for what you share and think we can encourage each other while staying humble.
Amen, Craig. That’s what I love about this blogging community – the opportunity to spur each other on.