Be Glorified...

Sunday morning we sang the song "Lord Be Glorified" (TFWS #2150). It's a very simple song, but it has been running through my head ever since. "In my life, Lord, be glorified, be glorified today. In your church, Lord, be glorified, be glorified today. In my heart, Lord, be glorified, be glorified today. In my praise, Lord, be glorified, be glorified today." I can't help but wonder if I am doing everything I can possibly do to glorify God in everything I do - in my life, in God's church, in my heart, and in my praise. Am I setting the best possible example for my parishioners? Am I teaching them how to glorify God every day in every way? I wonder.

Today I pray that I am doing these things and I ask that God will be with me as I try so hard to keep God as my center. To glorify God means to make decisions that are aligned with "Love God with your whole heart, soul, mind, and strength; and love your neighbor as yourself." If I am about to do or say anything that runs contrary to these values, then I need to stop and re-evaluate what I am about to do or say. This seems so simple and yet it trips us up all the time. To glorify God means to glorify God's creation; this means caring for everything and everyone that God has made, even when this is challenging or inconvenient. It means that gossip, meanness, discourtesy, and neglect are all out of the picture. Wow! That can be tough for all of us, can't it! I am thankful for John Wesley's reminder that we are "going on to perfection." Perfection is our goal and we're not there yet!

It's really helpful to keep this tune running through my head; it reminds me to glorify God at all times. I remember a course in Celtic Sprituality that I took in seminary. We talked about the peasant traditions of using every action, no matter how menial, as a form of prayer. Making the bed, folding laundry, cooking, cleaning, plowing, harvesting - all things were done for the glory of God and offered as prayer. This is an ancient lesson that speaks to us today. In the busy-ness of our lives, we can find calm in the thought that everything we do is for God's glory. When we offer all of ourselves as prayer, we can see those things that are pleasing to God and those things that are not. It seems to me that this is a great way to improve our relationship with God and to awaken awareness in ourselves about who and whose we are.