Let Them
Today’s blog comes straight from the heart of my wife, April. I’m so thankful for her love for Jesus, her honesty, and the way she quietly points people back to the faithfulness of God. My prayer is that as you read, you wouldn’t just be encouraged… but also challenged to draw closer to the Lord in whatever season you may be walking through. I pray it blesses your heart today. - Nick
There’s a phrase that has become really popular over the last couple of years, and you’ve probably heard it: “Let them.” The idea behind it is: Let them misunderstand you. Let them have their opinions. Let them think what they want. Not because it doesn’t hurt, but because trying to control everyone else is exhausting and impossible.
Even though this idea came from a secular viewpoint, I’ve realized there’s actually a lot of biblical truth in it. Scripture points us toward: surrender instead of striving, humility instead of self-defense, integrity instead of image management, and fearing God more than fearing people. One verse that comes to mind is: “For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.”— Ecclesiastes 12:14
If we’re not careful, we can spend our entire lives trying to manage other people’s perceptions of us. Trying to explain ourselves. Trying to make sure everyone “gets” our heart, our intentions, or our decisions. I heard it said this way:“You can spend your whole life trying to be understood by people who are committed to misunderstanding you.” Read that one more time. Wow… that hit me.
Some people will create theories about you based on a moment, a rumor, a look, or their own assumptions. And if you tried to chase every misunderstanding or every false assumption, you would absolutely exhaust yourself. So at some point, we have a choice: Live exhausted and anxious because we are constantly worried about how others perceive us…Or become settled in this: God knows. He sees what people don’t. He knows the motives others assume about. He knows the FULL story.
Have you seen the Disney movie Up? If someone walked into the middle of the movie, what would they think about Carl? He’s grumpy, isolated, angry, and constantly pushing people away. They’d probably assume he was just a bitter old man. Like… what’s his deal? BUT… what if they saw the beginning? They would have witnessed the love story between him and Ellie.The loss they went through. The heartbreak. The years of disappointment and grief he quietly carried. Suddenly, that same man looks completely different when you know the full story. That’s the thing about truth. Most people form opinions based on one scene they walked into late. But God sees the entire story from beginning to end. That doesn’t mean we become passive or stop caring about people. It simply means we stop making it our mission to control what everyone thinks about us.
Let them have their theories. Let them misunderstand you if they choose to. You keep honoring God. You keep walking upright. You keep living with integrity when nobody is clapping for it. Because Scripture never says, “Make sure everyone understands you,” because there will always be someone who doesn’t. But it does tell us to walk in wisdom, integrity, humility, and truth.
Sometimes obedience to God looks a lot quieter than defending yourself. Jesus was misunderstood. People questioned His motives, twisted His words, and judged Him unfairly — yet He never ran around desperately trying to force people to believe Him or prove He was who He said He was. He trusted the Father.
I was talking with a friend about this, and she said:“It’s so simple. It’s just REALLY hard.”ACCURATE. There is so much peace in finally realizing: I do not have to convince everyone to like me or understand my intentions. I just have to honor God. So if you’re tired from carrying the weight of everyone’s opinions, here’s your reminder: Let them think what they want, and then go live a life that honors God anyway. Less striving. Less anxiety. Less exhaustion from trying to manage everyone else’s perception of you. More peace. More joy. More freedom.…and watch how much lighter your soul feels when you stop carrying burdens God never asked you to carry.
-April Lemau