How To Get The Only Applause That Will Ever Matter
We are a no-pet family–or at least we were until my husband brought home a toy poodle puppy a few weeks ago. After much deliberation with the kids, we finally settled on a name: Presley. Presley the poodle.
Presley wears a harness with a giant bow. She can’t resist the softest, fluffiest blanket in the room. My kids carry her around like a baby doll and spray her with dog perfume. Neighbor kids come to visit her and adults fawn over her cuteness. Presley loves every second of it.
You’d think from the way she prances around that Presley doesn’t even know she’s a dog. She lives to be the center of attention.
And I have to wonder if we all have a little bit of Presley in us.
The Wrestle for Worth
As much as I avoid the attention of a room, I want to know that the work I do matters. I strive to do my best, forgetting that my worth is not tied to my work.
When I was in school, grades gave me a way to gauge the impact of my efforts. They were silent praise–acknowledgements that my time was well spent.
Seeking recognition can be subtle like that, dividing the hearts of extroverts and introverts alike. We might not all want to be praised in public, or even thanked out loud, but the wrestle for worth is common to all of us.
Perhaps that’s why our world has become loud with applause: we esteem achievement and celebrate participation because deep inside, we all simply want to feel seen.
We want to know that we matter.
That our lives stack up to something significant.
That we’re fulfilling our life purpose.
Because in the quiet moments we wonder if we’re not doing enough. Worry that we aren’t enough.
Our hearts know that applause is temporary and fickle. No amount of affirmation from those around us can erase our need for more.
There’s an ache to be noticed that no human can ever fill.
Applause is Already Coming
To the one doing the work while someone else gets promoted.
To the one diligently practicing, who hasn’t been picked yet.
To the one quietly faithful, serving in selfless and unseen ways.
To the one holding up the team but never getting credit for it.
To the one behind the brilliant ideas, the one always building others up, and the one quick to assume responsibility but not the praise.
To the mama making sacrifices no one will ever know about.
To the beautiful soul who carefully avoids the spotlight.
To the neighbor offering snacks, rides, toys, or encouragement, never expecting a thanks.
Here’s good news: the praise that matters most is already coming–from Him.
Paul explains it like this:
When the Lord comes, He will draw our buried motives, thoughts, and deeds (even things we don’t know or admit to ourselves) out of the dark shadows of our hearts into His light. When this happens, the voice of God will speak to each of us the only praise that will ever matter.
This verse is an invitation to exhale. To stop worrying about what doesn’t really matter: impressing other people.
No longer do we have to live for applause. We know God already adores us. Instead of worrying about what other people think of us, we can love and serve and give–generously, without any strings attached. We can work diligently–not to earn our worth, but to honor God and point others to Him (Romans 12:11).
Rest in this:
When we feel forgotten about or passed over, God sees us.
When we fail or fall behind, God holds us.
And when our motivations are mixed up, God gently helps us realign them.
A Commisioning
Jesus is all about the heart-motivation stuff. He says the why underneath what we do is extremely important.
Even when it comes to loving our neighbors and letting God overflow through us into our neighborhoods.
We can do good things with wrong motivations and wrong things with good motivations. But God, who always sees us, sees what’s beneath what we do.
Since His is the only applause that will ever matter, we can come to Him with bold transparency. God’s grace is more abundant than our misguided motivations (2 Corinthians 12:9). Rather than beat ourselves up over our selfish thoughts, we surrender them to God. It’s His Holy Spirit that cleanses our hearts and transforms our minds.
You and I get to live lightly, heart alive, spirit in tune with Christ. We get to love wildly, unashamedly, ginormously because we are secure in God’s love for us. We get to show up consistently and bless others with excellent work because they matter, and we know we do too.
We get to bandage busted knees and sit in carpool lines and stay up late so a favorite sweatshirt is clean for tomorrow, all for the sincere, irrepressible joy of serving our kids. We get to partner with God to bring His light into our neighborhoods, needing nothing in return because we are content to wait for the only applause that will ever matter.
It matters, all of it. You leaning into the work in front of you that God nudges you towards. You partnering with Him to help make others feel seen, valued, and loved. You living already loved by God–at home, at work or school, at the gym, in the carlines and bleachers, and in your neighborhood.
A Prayer to Remember Your Worth
Let’s pray.
Lord, when the holes in our hearts that yearn for attention manipulate our motives, remind us that we are already fiercely adored–by You. When we feel invisible, shield us from the lies about our worth. And when discouragement sets in, lift our chin and hold our gaze until we feel seen straight through.
In Your holy name, Jesus, we pray. Amen.
Just a friend over here in your corner,
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