ARE YOU PROUD OF GOD?
“The LORD is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation; This is my God, and I will praise Him; My father's God, and I will extol Him.”
Exodus 15:2
When my firstborn, Jill, was five years old, her kindergarten class put on a little play called Tacky the Penguin. All the children dressed as penguins and learned a few lines of dialogue. I left work early that day so I would not miss a minute of Jill’s theatrical debut!
I will never forget my sweet little Jill when she saw me in the crowd—not many fathers were able to come. She nudged her friend sitting next to her, pointed at me, and whispered with excitement, “That’s my dad!” She was so proud of me! It warms my heart to this day to remember her bragging to her friend about me.
ARE YOU PROUD OF GOD?
Chris Tomlin has a wonderful worship song called, “Good, Good Father.” To be sure, God is so good, so kind, so gracious and loving and compassionate and wonderful. He is the One who is worthy of all our praise. And He delights to hear us brag on Him, especially when we talk to other people.
I am convinced that most of us don’t spend enough time boasting in the Lord. The bulk of our prayer time consists of asking for His help rather than praising Him for His presence. What if we reserved that percentage?
Years ago, I was introduced to the prayer acronym A.C.T.S. Perhaps you have heard of it?
A stands for Adoration. Begin your prayers with praise. Spend sufficient time bragging on God and recounting His marvelous character and track record.
C stands for Confession. Ask God to search your heart and humbly confess any sin the Holy Spirit brings to your mind.
T stands for Thanksgiving. Spend time thanking God for all the wonderful things He has done for you and all the blessings He has graciously bestowed upon you.
S stands for Supplication. It is here where you make your requests to God and intercede for friends, loved ones, leaders, and situations. Supplication comes last, not first. It comes after you have filled the air with your thanks and praise!
Spend some time right now bragging on God. Let Him know how proud you are of Him. That is how you and I bless the Lord! The apostle John said, “See how great a love the Father has bestowed upon us that we should be called children of God” (1 John 3:1). When I consider the cross and the sacrifice that was made to purchase my salvation, my heart is overwhelmed with gratitude and awe. I nudge my friends, so to speak, and say with tears of joy, “That’s my Dad!”
Love,
Pastor Jeff Schreve,
From His Heart Ministries
Dr. Jeff Schreve believes that no matter how badly you may have messed up in life, God still loves you and has a wonderful plan just for you. From His Heart provides real truth, love and hope on over 700 radio stations each day, in 182 countries each week on TV, and is always available online. Pastor Jeff takes no income from this ministry. All donations go to furthering the broadcast outreach. As a listener/viewer supported ministry, we thank you for joining with us to help speak the truth in love to a lost and hurting world. Go to www.fromhisheart.org for more information.
SPECIAL OFFER
