Have you considered living for an audience of One? Unfortunately, most of us live for the wrong audience of one. We either live solely for ourselves or unhealthily for another person, all at the expense of living for God. One of the Bible’s most prominent characters was King David whose chronicles demonstrated for us what it means to live for an audience of One.
David battled for an audience of one. As a young shepherd boy, David came onto the scene of a winner-take-all battle between a designated member of the Israelites and Goliath, the chosen warrior for the Philistines. Abhorred by the gall of the giant Goliath’s defaming comments toward the God of Israel, a confident David rushed to battle for his Creator. “David said to the Philistine, ‘You come against me with the sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the LORD will hand you over to me, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s, and he will give all of you into our hands'” (1 Samuel 17:45-47).
David’s perspective of victory shifted from we to He. Rather than battling for his own causes, David fought for God’s. His heartfelt words recorded in a psalm reflected his perspective that gave God all of the credit for victory, “With God we will gain the victory, and he will trample down our enemies” (Psalm 60:12; cf. 108:13). In order to be victorious for an audience of one, we must shift our perspective of success from we to He, transitioning from battling for our own selfish causes, to fighting for God’s, namely the advancement of His kingdom in the hearts and lives of people. This shift in perspective will flow to our words. Rather than saying, “Look what we did!” we will find ourselves proclaiming, “Look what He did!”
Victorious means that God: (1) delivers and (2) sustains us in our spiritual battles. This was the pattern in David’s life. He penned regarding God’s deliverance, “To the One who gives victory to kings, who delivers his servant David from the deadly sword” (Psalm 144:10). David was free to give credit to His deliverer, “O Sovereign LORD, my strong deliverer, who shields my head in the day of battle” (Psalm 140:7). David wrote regarding God’s sustenance, “You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great” (Psalm 18:35). When our perspectives shift from we to He, we become victorious for an audience of One Who delivers and sustains us in our spiritual battles.
Battle for an audience of One. Change your perspective of victory from we to He. Let your measurement of success transition from a dependence on meeting your selfish agenda to the advancement of God’s kingdom in the hearts and lives of others. God will grow His kingdom in you as you experience His deliverance and sustenance, freeing you to give Him the credit for victory. Your words will change from, “Look what we did!” to “Look what He did!”
Episode 35: Living for an Audience of One from mitchkrusetv on Vimeo.