On Living For The Opinion Of Others

Do not pay attention to every word people say, or you may hear your servant cursing you—for you know in your heart the many times you yourself have cursed others.

—Ecclesiastes 7:21–22

Solomon, the writer of Ecclesiastes, knew what it’s like to live for the opinion of others, and he knew that it’s as meaningless as chasing the wind—because it doesn’t last. What one person loves is what another person hates. What one person thinks is amazing another person calls total failure. So you wear yourself out trying to respond and pivot and change yourself according to every little thing anyone says, and you end up so tired, and so far from your calling, and so far from satisfied.

So much of the biblical narrative is about God calling his people away from idolatry, over and over. And this is one more example. When you allow other people’s opinion of you to define you, that person becomes an idol, a substitute for God. God made you, and he defines you. He calls you; he leads you. When you let yourself be led and called and defined by the clamoring voices that have something to say about every little thing, you’ll never be satisfied. You’ll never feel peace. You’ll never be able to rest.