I think one of the hardest things to do is to deflect praise from oneself to where it belongs. In the past we had a boxer (Cassius Clay, aka Muhammed Ali) proclaim early in his career that he was the greatest. Sportscasters are known to choose a GOAT (Greatest Of All Time). Recently, a football player announced that he was “the greatest.” I was so disgusted by this shameless self-promotion just from a headline, I couldn’t tell you who it was, what team he played for, or what position he played.
How different from these words:
“Praise the LORD! Praise Him, you servants of the LORD, Praise the name of the LORD. Blessed be the name of the LORD from this time on and forever. From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the LORD is to be praised. The LORD is high above all nations; His glory is above the heavens.” (Ps.113:1-4)
Or these:
Not to us, LORD, not to us, but to Your name give glory, because of Your mercy, because of Your truth.” (115:1)
What a difference-taking credit or giving credit. The psalmist is unequivocal in his stand: the name of the Lord is to be praised. I don’t, you don’t, deserve any praise. It all goes to Him. Deflect it there.
“Father, You are worthy of my praise. May I never gather praise or seek praise for myself. May I always deflect it to You.”
All Scripture is from the NASB2020 edition.
As a Christian, praise is one area that can be tricky. We are supposed to encourage one another and in some ways that can be seen as praise, yet we are suppose to be humble. False humility is another place we need to be careful. I think the point is that we need to recognize that God is the one that has provided our gifts, talents, skills, etc… and give Him the credit. Good thoughts this morning.
Thanks Ryan for your comments. You are spot on about false humility and pretending but really enjoying the praise.
Only God deserves all our praise and honor, Bill. He is the GREATEST for all time!
(Tried to watch your service this past Sunday, but could not do so. I know you said you were holding it outdoors, so that might have been the problem. I’ll be looking forward to next week!)
Blessings!
You are right Martha. The service started at 10:00. Could that have been the problem? Others were able to watch it. You can catch it on YouTube or FB