“Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples.” (Psalm 96:3)
“O give thanks to the LORD, call on his name, make his deeds known among the peoples. Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wonderful works.” (Psalm 105:1,2)
This past Christmas one of my best friends gave me a very meaningful gift. She had started with a blank spiral journal made of “brown bag” paper. She then collaged both sides of the front and back covers with beautifully patterned paper, encouraging scripture, and inspirational words. On the front cover, the word “PRAY” was spelled out using large, patterned scrapbook lettering. It was a simple gift, and yet one of the most meaningful gifts I have ever received. As God had been (and still is!) revealing to me the mighty power of prayer and what a precious weapon it is, I decided to use the journal exclusively for recording three things: answered prayers, God’s “extra blessings” (when God has blessed me with something that I haven’t specifically prayed for/about), and encouraging scripture He has given to me.
I immediately began putting the journal to use, first recording a list of specific prayers God had answered in the year 2009. The next couple pages were scriptures that He had recently used to draw me closer to Him and show me more of His character. I continued to pray about specific requests in my and others’ lives, hoping that I would soon be filling the pages with with testimonies of God’s extravagant faithfulness. As I began to see answers, I excitedly began filling the pages, being sure to record details. An eager expectancy arose in my heart that caused me to be more on the look out for both answers to prayer and those “extra blessings” from God that seem to be one of His ways of sending a gentle “I love you” or “I know your circumstances” our way.
God has been teaching another one of my best friends about the power of prayer as well. Inspired by the gift I had been given, I decided to make a collaged prayer journal for her. It has been so fun to sit with her and tell each other about specific prayer requests that God has answered. A few weeks ago we were having our weekly early morning breakfast at Arabica, a time when we’re able to tell each other how God is working in our lives, share burdens, and laugh. It happened that morning that we both had an answer to prayer that we were anxious to tell each other. By the time she was finished sharing, I found myself wanting to say, “Well wait until you hear THIS!”- not because my answer to prayer was “better”, but simply because I couldn’t wait for her to share in my excitement. I laughed inside, picturing the conversation as some kind of competition for the best and most answered prayers. (Only jokingly- there is by no means any air of “answered prayers competition” among us!) As I think back to the conversation, it makes me think of David’s words in the Psalms. In Psalm 89:1, he says, “I will sing of your steadfast love, O LORD, forever; with my mouth I will proclaim your faithfulness to all generations.” David was incredibly aware of the many works that God had done in his life. He was a man who was on the look out for God’s faithfulness, and when he saw it at work, he wanted everyone to know! In other words, David knew his bragging rights.
As a child of the Almighty God, Creator of the universe, it gave David great delight to “brag” on his God. When God performed might acts of strength and victory on the behalf of David and his kingdom, David did not claim the victory as something of his own doing. He didn’t write Psalms about men he had killed or obstacles he had climbed over. Quite the opposite- “…by my God I can leap over a wall.” (Ps. 18:29) David knew where the glory was due and he was quick to get it there.
As children of God, we’ve got bragging rights! And the more we use those rights, the more God is glorified, because it is God’s almighty power and victory put on display and not a limited man-made effort. John the Baptist very well knew his position as being one who had bragging rights, yet was not the one to be bragged about. He said about Jesus in John 3:30, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” Notice the two parts to that- there is a decreasing and an increasing. We must make sure that both are happening! We can easily decrease by stepping out of the spotlight, shutting our mouths, serving behind the scenes, and throwing all pride that wishes to display itself into the trash. But if all we do is focus on our own decreasing, how will Christ increase? It takes humble children who are eager to use their bragging rights! It takes children who can’t wait to tell their friends about what God has done! It takes intentional remembrance, whether by writing, recording, drawing, singing, or simply telling.
When was the last time you used your bragging rights? When was the last time you “bragged” about something God had done in your life in a way that put Him in the spotlight and made him “increase”?
When I was a junior in high school, God gave me back some of the hearing I had lost in the months before. It was a true miracle! My mom said, “Tessa, we need to announce this in church!” She pointed out Psalm 71:15-17:
My mouth will tell of your righteous acts, of your deeds of salvation all day long, though their number is past my knowledge. I will come praising the mighty deeds of the Lord GOD, I will praise your righteousness, yours alone. O God, from my youth you have taught me, and I still proclaim your righteous deeds.”
On a following Sunday morning, my mom read the passage to the congregation and together we made an announcement about the miraculous work that God had done in my life. The point was not to say, “Look what God has done in my life, look what happened to me”, but rather, “Look what GOD has done in my life! Look at GOD’S faithfulness!” I trust that God was glorified in that.
Yes, we must actively decrease. But we also must actively let God increase. Let’s give Him the glory He is due and put those bragging rights to use!
