Praising Him

Photo by Adam Wilson (2017)via Unsplash.com, CC0 Public Domain[/caption] One of the Kindness Projects my kids did this summer was to appreciate my husband. They rotated weeks focusing on how hard he works to provide us with the life we lead. Then, in gratitude for all he does, they carried out small, secret acts of kindness for him: writing him little thank-you notes, leaving candy on his desk, and so on.

Copyright 2018 Claire McGarry. All rights reserved.[/caption] Initially, I was having them do this so my husband could get the recognition he deserves. But, as it played out, I could see a dual purpose: My kids slowly recognized, for themselves, all my husband does behind the scenes. They also learned to be grateful for all of it. Even more surprising was what I learned. I listened to a lot of Christian rock this summer. I'd always been one to thank God routinely throughout the day, but these songs went well beyond gratitude: They worshiped and praised Him. As I sang along, I grappled with the question: Does God really need us to praise Him? I can't imagine He's vain and needs to be told how wonderful He is. That's where our Kindness Project intersected with my questioning. My husband is the kind of person who doesn't need compliments. It's just not how he's wired. I've know this all along. Deep down, I think I knew that teaching my kids to be grateful for him was more about them than him. The more they had to look for and learn about the things my husband does for us, the more aware they were, the more appreciative they became, and the deeper their love for him grew. The same holds true when we praise and worship God. He doesn't need our compliments. He isn't wired that way.

Offer praise as your sacrifice to God. (Psalm 50:14)

Praising God is more about us than Him. The more we have to look for and learn about the things God does for us, the more aware we are, the more appreciative we become, and the deeper our love for Him grows.