God "calls forth His praise from the lips of children and infants" (Psalm 8:2) and "the stones will cry out" if we keep silent (Luke 19:40). God's creation was made to praise Him, for He is glorious and ultimately deserving of all praise. If the birds sing and the wind whistles to bring glory to its Creator, how much more so should we humans, who are made in the image of God, use our every breath to praise the One who created us, saves us, and sustains us all out of love!
Notably, we humans often do not use our lives for the glory of God, but rather for the glory of ourselves. I am guilty of this. It's easy to let our minds and hearts wander toward selfish thoughts during a moment of worship in church while our lips move soundlessly. It's easy to strive toward personal gain, academic success, and human acknowledgement instead of using our lives and talents as we should.
Who provides us with each breath as we run frantically throughout the day? Who calls the sun forth in the morning so that we may wake? Who instills dreams and desires in our hearts? What are their purposes? Are we given talents and abilities so that we may be another person on a pedestal, holding gilded trophies above our heads as if it was by our strength or choosing that we have achieved anything noteworthy? Are we given desires for the purpose of chasing after what we crave when we crave it?
A song sung for oneself is empty and lacking. The world is humming a tune of selfishness, of personal longings appeased by wealth, fame, and fleeting love. Many of us have become so accustomed to hearing the cacophony of voices and meaningless words and promises that we have forgotten how beautiful a song sung for God is. We have chosen to ignore how fulfilling a life lived for our Creator is because the noise of this world has plugged our ears. What does it sound like to hear a song sung for God?
Yesterday, at my church, there was a rose procession in remembrance of the 45th anniversary of the legalization of abortion. Mothers and fathers, children and teenagers, walked down the aisle, carrying a single rose that represented all the unborn children aborted during each year since the Roe v. Wade case 45 years ago. Thus, 45 roses were brought forward and placed in a basket.
Seeing this procession brought me to tears and opened my ears to the beautiful tune God's people were singing all around me. They were singing for the wonder, the beauty, and the preciousness of life. They were praising God, the giver of all life. They were thanking Him for each heartbeat, each breath He grants to all living things. They were not 'singing' for themselves, for their personal wishes. They were not singing the songs that the world was telling them to sing. They were singing songs of praise. Praise to God.
Such a song touched my heart in more ways than I can explain. Seeing others bring the rightful glory to the Lord, the giver of life, comforted me. It made me want to praise the same God they were praising, to feel the same special love that overflowed from their hearts. It was beautiful.
In the same way, the song we sing with our lives, with our actions and our words, reaches the ears of countless people each day. I pray that the melody I sing and the words I profess would not promote myself or my accomplishments, but would bring glory to the One who made me and blessed me with unique talents and dreams.
We have been made to praise, to sing a song of love to our Creator and Savior. Our life's song will either bring glory to God or to ourselves. Like the songs of birds outside my window, may our lives be like a sweet melody that reminds all those around us of the One who fills our hearts with joy and our lips with praise.
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