11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. REFLECTIONSWritten by Jenny GriffinI’m a major people-pleaser. So I really wish Jesus was speaking as if it were Opposite Day when he tells me I’m blessed when people don’t like me for following him. Do you struggle with this too? Jesus encourages us to keep an eternal perspective in order to endure persecution with gladness. I so often take the short-term view of life and worry about temporary things like being well-liked. Pray with me that God would help us to consider it a blessing to suffer for the sake of the gospel.We’re not alone in our suffering either. Jesus reminds us that the prophets were persecuted too. We know that Jesus himself was mocked, beaten, scorned, betrayed, and ultimately humiliated in death on a cross. How can we expect the world to accept us if it rejected the perfect Lord Jesus? Thank God with me that the Lord Jesus was the suffering servant for our sake in order to secure our place in the kingdom of heaven.These verses really challenged me to stop and reflect on whether I’ve been boldly following Jesus or if I’ve been timid about the gospel in order to avoid persecution and being not liked. Pray with me that we’d boldly follow Jesus and count it a blessing when we face temporary suffering as we look forward to everlasting life with him in heaven. Let’s rejoice in being Jesus-pleasers not people-pleasers!ABOUT THE AUTHORJenny is part of our Fairfield Evening Church with her husband and daughter. She likes to advocate for mental health and has most likely asked how yours is going.