What matters most is not what man sees but what God knows.

"And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly"(Matthew 6:5-6).

In this passage Jesus was not teaching against public prayer. Jesus Himself prayed publicly. Jesus was speaking against those who did religious things to appear spiritual before men. People are often more concern with their reputation (what other people think about them) than their character (what God knows about them). But God is more interested in our character than He is our reputation. The religious Jews of Jesus day wanted to be known by others as men of prayer. In other words they wanted to have the reputation among men that they sought God through prayer. But God's doesn't reward us based on our reputation (what others think of us). God's reward is based on our character (what He knows about us). It's been said that your character is best measured by what you do that no one else sees but God.

Are you a man or woman of prayer? The way to answer that question is to examine your secret life. Do you seek God in prayer when no one is looking? Does prayer characterize your private life? So what if others know you to be a man of prayer. What matters most is not what man sees but what God knows. Those who care more for their reputation might gain the praise of man but lose the reward of the Almighty. The spiritual things we do only have value when we do them for God's eyes only. Seek God because He is worthy to be sought.