to god be the glory

When I go on a road trip I always pray first, I bind all the animals off the road and make Jesus the Lord of my travels.  I always go safely and return safely and I experience the favor of God that I asked for.  I began to think of all the other travelers who arrive at their destinations without hazards of any kind.  As I pondered the scenario trying to understand the difference between the two the Lord spoke up.  Son, the difference is this: you gave Me the glory for your travels, most of the others don’t.  It is very important that we thank our Lord and give Him the glory and the credit for every prayer we offer.
 
Isaiah 42:8 I am the Lord: that is My Name: and My glory will I not give to another, neither My praise to graven images.
 
When I was a Catholic I wore a Saint Christopher medal, the patron saint of travelers.  But when I became enlightened by the truth, I repented and laid aside my graven image.  I no longer believe in luck, good or bad.  I no longer leave anything to chance.  Praying according to God’s will puts everything in His capable hands and that brings a supply of peace.  We cannot put our eternal security into the devices of man, there are things that we need that only God can provide.  If God commands a man to bless you, God gets the glory and the man gets a thank you.  I can understand why the world puts their faith in inanimate objects, but the Christians have no excuse to join them.
 
1 Corinthians 3:5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom you believed.

The value of a minister is determined by how they present Jesus.  Many believers know very little about the Lord because they have not been taught properly.  It’s difficult to blame the ministers because they only teach what they know, and many of them know very little.  How can a minister help someone draw close to the Lord if they have Him at arm’s length?  The more you learn of Jesus the more intimate you become with Him.
 
Psalm 119:164 Seven times a day do I praise you because of Your righteous judgements.
 
I don’t know why the Psalmist chose seven times a day to praise the Lord but I can tell you, He deserves more than that.  Praise is a way to give God the glory for all that He has done for us.  When you get a revelation of His goodness you will praise Him all day long.  Make a determination to praise the Lord for every good thing you receive during the course of your day.  The Bible says every good and perfect thing comes from above, we have so much to be grateful for we cannot list it all.  We cannot thank Him enough even if He didn’t do one more thing for the rest of our lives!
 
Philippians 4:6 In every situation, pray with thanksgiving and let your requests be made known unto God.
 
When do we thank God and give Him the glory for our prayers?  When we stand praying.  When we pray God’s will, His answer is yes and amen.  Waiting for God to answer a prayer before we thank Him is not faith and without faith it is impossible to please Him.  God is worthy of all our praise all of the time. Purpose in your heart to praise Him all the live long day.

---