Here's something I've learned from the Trump years. There's an important difference between being respectable and seeking respect.

Certain conservative/Republican leaders have long been desperate for respect from the elites (in the news media, entertainment, etc.) Same goes for some Christian leaders who idolize respect from the world. But as Ferris Bueller put it, "[Y]ou can't respect somebody who kisses your ass. It just doesn't work."

Trump showed us what can be accomplished by someone who doesn't care what his adversaries think of him. But ultimately, he still lacked respectability (largely because he lacked integrity).

What we desperately need are leaders who are full of integrity, *and* don't care what other people think of them. For this, you need a foundation to stand on which is outside yourself, and which is not under the control of your enemies. You must submit to be judged by that foundation, but refuse to be judged by someone else's arbitrary standard.