The Audience of One, a sermon based on John 14: 15-21, preached on May 10, 2026

Last Thursday was the National Day of Prayer, and one of the largest prayer gatherings in the country on the national day of prayer is the Cobb County National Day of Prayer Breakfast, so I woke up last Thursday morning at 4:30 AM, and I needed to get up early, although not that early. I set my alarm for 5:30. That would have given me plenty of time to get ready, but I woke up at 4:30 because I was too excited to stay in bed any longer. I couldn’t wait to get to that breakfast. Not only does the prayer breakfast feature scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, potatoes, and blueberry muffins with orange juice and hot coffee, but it’s all that with 900 fellow residents of Cobb County, making the prayer breakfast a significant event. Every year at this breakfast, I’m honored to be invited to sit at the table of one of the major sponsors, prime seating at this 900-person event, because church members Judge Jim Bodiford and Nancy Bodiford invite me to sit with them. We were there in the middle of the grand ballroom, up close to all the movers and shakers in our community: judges, business executives, and politicians. I saw Charlie Bethel, an old friend of our church, who used to chaperone our Mexico mission trips when I was in high school. He’s now running to defend his seat on the Georgia Supreme Court. Also there was Chief Deputy Rhonda Anderson, who runs the jail and has been instrumental in our partnership there and with her church, Turner Chapel AME. Our table was next to Daniel White’s table. Next to Daniel White’s table was the Tip Top Poultry table, whose chaplain I had lunch with last week. Walking around were people I love to see, but so rarely get to see all in one place, and so I woke up last Thursday morning excited to eat a good breakfast at a prominent table surrounded by important people. I put on my best suit, a freshly pressed white shirt, and a tie my wife, Sara, just bought me, but as I looked in the mirror last Thursday morning, I looked myself in the mirror to ask, “Who am I trying to impress?” Do you hear what I’m saying? Last Thursday morning, I woke up excited to go to an important event. An event that matters in our community. But why does it matter? Why is it important? For whom was I getting dressed up? I ask these questions because our motivation matters. If you are motivated to please the world, if you wake up eager to impress the powers that be, then you’ll feel good when you receive their approval and you’ll feel bad when you don’t, but bow before the King of Kings and He will lift you up every time. Put your hope in Jesus and never be disappointed. Trust in the Lord, and He will put you under His wings but desperately go seeking the approval of people and put yourself in a dangerous position. I have a good friend named Elizabeth Manning. She grew up in this church with me. In 1998, we were selected by our peers as the two wittiest members of our graduating class at Marietta High School. The other day we were having coffee, and she said to me, “I’ve learned that if you’re OK with yourself, every place is safe, and until you’re OK with yourself, no place is safe.” Are you OK with yourself? Do you know who you are? Whose approval are you seeking? Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments,” and I ask you to consider this phrase from our Gospel lesson because we are all being pulled in different directions. We are all being asked to conform to varying circumstances, but if you desire the Lord’s approval then “Love the Lord your God, love yourself, love your neighbor.” “They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.” Those are words from the lips of Jesus. Do them and please Him but go out into this world seeking approval from people and live like a ship without an anchor, tossed to and fro by the wind, for public approval is fickle. That’s why I once asked County Commissioner Keli Gambrill how she does it. Bob and Keli are always up in the balcony at the 8:30 service. Their worship attendance is outstanding, though she’s busy being one of five members of the Cobb County Commission. As a member of the commission, she bears the responsibility of representing her neighbors, some of whom she is always disappointing. Because Cobb County is nearly greater in population than the entire state of South Dakota, Keli is always disappointing somebody, so I once asked her how she deals with the responsibility of representing so many people with so many different opinions, and she said, “I serve the audience of one.” Now, I didn’t know exactly what that meant until she shared with me a song that inspires her. The song goes like this: It’s such a strong temptation to live for man’s applause. But I don’t want to buy into that lie because I know it’s not a worthy cause. I’ll be content to serve an audience of one. Only his approval counts when all is said and done. And this is my prayer when my race is won. I want to hear well done from the audience of one. My friends, public opinion rises and falls; therefore, do what is right, love justice, love your neighbor, and please the Lord, without seeking the endorsement of the wrong people. They say, the right endorsement can get you elected, but how much does that endorsement cost? I remember being 8 years old and the new kid in school. Because I always had the good kind of Little Debbie snacks in my lunch box, everyone wanted to trade with me, yet I’d accept trades for lesser snacks because I wanted someone to be my friend. I thought that was something you grew out of, but look at politics these days and what people are going along with to fit in. Or think with me about what it’s like to be a mom. Wanting to be liked, and to fit in, and to feel like a good mom is a dangerous business. Now, to look like a good dad, the stakes are low. Dad stops by the grocery store and drops off a pack of cupcakes to his daughter’s second grade class, and the world will line up for a parade. Have you seen it happen? I’ve lived it, and it’s wonderful. Mom drops off that same pack of store-bought cupcakes, and do you know what she hears? “So you didn’t have time to bake?” It’s rough out there for moms, so don’t be the kind of mom who is looking for approval in all the wrong places. Don’t look for affirmation on Instagram. Don’t look for approval from the popular moms who seem to have it all together (They don’t.). Remember that comparison is the thief of joy and pay attention to whose approval you are seeking, for even some who call themselves Christians regularly turn their backs on the children of God because they worry more about their reputations than their witness. They work for purity but forget about justice. They want to make a good showing in the flesh, so they pray at the right time, and they look like the right kind of person, but if they don’t sound like Jesus and if they don’t love like Jesus, then they don’t follow Jesus. My friends, be careful about trying to be accepted by the group, or risk losing the approval of the only One who matters. Don’t get swept up in the storm of hatred raging in our nation. Make Jesus proud by loving yourself. By loving somebody. By caring about the downtrodden. By speaking up for the weak. By living in such a way that you make your mama proud. On Mother’s Day, I think about a great video of a basketball player at a press conference. This guy is a big deal NBA superstar. He’s sitting at the press table with all those microphones in front of him. Cameras are flashing. Reporters are asking their questions. Everyone wants to hear what he has to say. This is his moment to shine and to impress the whole world, but as he’s answering questions, his phone rings and he sees that it’s his mama calling, so he picks up. I love that video. Pick up the phone when the people who love you call even though you’re busy working because your job can’t love you back. Consider who you’re aspiring to be, who you’re trying to impress, and who will be there for you when everything falls apart. The Rev. Meri Kate Marcum once preached a sermon in which she told this story: A young girl was just starting school and was required to go through something called “kindergarten screening.” The teachers asked her to count to 20, recite her ABC’s, identify shapes and colors, and even asked her to skip down the hallway. Then came the “life situation questions,” like “What do you do when you go outside, but it’s raining?” She answered, “You get a raincoat or an umbrella.” Then the teacher asked, “What do you do when you want to go into a room, but it’s dark.” Without missing a beat, this little girl said, “You hold someone’s hand.” Whose hand will always be there for you to hold? Who has promised that He will not leave nor will He forsake you? Who will not leave us orphaned? Who tells us again and again, “Be not afraid for I am with you”? My friends, there is not a mortal alive on this earth who can do for you what Jesus can, so don’t go trying too hard to impress people who will love you one minute and leave you the next. Get out of the bed and stand on the reality that Christ has died for you and make Him proud. If you love Him, keep His commandments. Amen.