A good contractor will always make sure his tools are in good condition and well kept so they always work on whatever job he is on. Do you realize you are a tool in God’s toolbox? While He is the one doing the fixing, you may be the one He uses. But when you are done, do you praise Him for that.
When you talk about the things God has done in your life, how do you do it? In other words are you doing it with a humble, thankful heart or are you bragging? To go a step further…are you doing it with your whole heart?
Psalm 9:1-2
1 I will praise You, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will tell of all Your marvelous works. 2 I will be glad and rejoice in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.
According to the notes in my study Bible, this entire Psalm was likely written by David after a victory over the Philistines. The first two lines of this Psalm gives the how and the why of praising our Heavenly Father. Praising God involves two things; wholeheartedness and sharing what He has done for you.
So let’s examine ourselves based upon that criteria? When we praise Him, in private or in public, how much your heart is actually in it? Are the things you are saying about what God has done for you genuine? Or are you sharing in a manner that brings more attention to you than to Him? That’s called boasting. Secondly, and this ties into the first, are you telling of His works and what He did. Remember, regardless of your part in anything, God is the one who did the work, you were just a tool. You should consider it an honor that He would use you for whatever purpose, but make no mistake, He’s the one who did the work.
I have borne witness to many Christians who have made a show of worshiping and praising God so they could appear more righteous. It’s not a judgment, it’s a fact, because we are all guilty of it. We all get a little full of ourselves sometimes and start to think, “See how good I am that God would use me to do this.” In our humanness we tend to forget He is the one doing the work, He is the one that deserves the credit. It’s not take away from what He’s done in us, for us or through us, but He is the one doing the work. We are nothing but tools in His hands.
Java with Jesus 