As the Wind blows
Should we live life to please others or to please ourselves? The answer is somewhat complicated. It really all depends on your focus. A better question is: are you more interested in making an impact or simply pandering to the whims of others?
When you live life trying to be someone you’re not, in a futile attempt to fit in, you follow a road that will inevitably lead to a dead end. You end up compromising your values. Other opinions become paramount to you. That’s just how it works. You’ll be like a piece of clay that’s never allowed to dry; others will keep manipulating you.
Think of politicians running for office. They change their positions all the time to please the electorate and gain votes. The irony is, most candidates enter a life of public service trying to change things. In the beginning, they are more focused on what’s best, rather than what’s most popular. They courageously go against the popular opinion in pursuit of the greater good, and defend their position with belief and vigor. They end up being admired for it. So they continue to get elected to higher office. But the higher they go, the more risky this approach becomes. They get tainted and end up ‘playing the game’. The experienced ones stick to the talking points: phrases that the latest polls say we want to hear. If you watch a debate between candidates, rarely do the participants answer the
moderator’s questions. They’re too busy spinning their answers to parrot words, ideas and positions that they know we want to hear. Most of the time, the candidate offers up big promises that they have no intention of keeping once elected. Their objective is to get elected, not to make a difference.
Here’s the lesson: we do the same thing when we live life to please others. We covet the opinion of others; depend on them to guide our choice. We choose popular opinion over the greater good. We lose our identity. We are like a sailboat on the water, waiting for wind to blow. We become perfectly content with whichever direction the breeze takes us. We never get anywhere, never develop a plan to arrive at our destination. We are just happy that the wind is blowing. That’s no way to live.
So, we should live our life trying to please ourselves then? Not exactly. Here’s another key question: are you more interested in proving others wrong or doing what’s right? Remember, arrogance is a poison we drink slowly. It not only ends up killing us, but infecting those around us. No person is an island.
Even Adam had God in the beginning. God decided Adam was better with company, so He created Eve. When we develop a mindset that doesn’t care about others, we run a dangerous gamble. We close ourselves off to other opinions, think that we are the only ones who really matter. We miss valuable growth opportunities.
The truth is we need to discern the opinions of others and weigh them against our own experience. Not every decision we make will be right, but when we live with the right balance, focused on doing what’s right rather than simply what’s popular, we end up in a better place.
The great thing is, the Good Lord gave you a wonderful mind. He gave you discernment. And He continues to give you experience through life events that will assist in making the right decisions. Live just for others or simply for yourself? Choose the third option: live for what’s right. Let that be your guide. You have all the tools. Build your life to be significant. I’m very proud of you! Love dad
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