A quarterback for Christ

 Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,ascribe to the Lord glory and strength! Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;bring an offering and come before him!Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness;1 Chronicles 16:28-29

Unless you've been hiding under a rock, you now know that the Seattle Seahawks won the Superbowl last night.   And, you are probably also aware that Russell Wilson, the Seahawks quarterback gave all the glory to God as he was being interviewed after the game on the field.  I almost thought I had heard wrong!  They didn't even have time to edit the footage!!!     

As Christians, we should all be looking for opportunities to share what God has done in our lives.   Instead of making excuses for reasons God can't use us, we should be looking for ways He can.   Russell Wilson was a third round draft pick and considered too short (5'11") and too young (25) to be a quarterback.  When interviewed on "CBS This Morning", this is what he said:

"God's given me so much talent and my height doesn't define my skill set, I believe that God has given me a right arm and for some reason even though I'm 5'11" to be able to make the throws and make great decisions on the field and all that."  He went on to say that it was only through his faith, that he was able to deal with adversity.

  

Prior to the game, Wilson testified that he was turning only to Jesus Christ for help in the game.  And, in an interview with Pastor Mark Driscoll, the Seahawks quarterback said: "Jesus is love! At the end of the day, we are all looking for someone to comfort us, somebody to be there for us at all times. When we are at the worst times of our lives, when we are battling with something, or struggles, whatever it may be, when we are at our highest point as well, when things are going really well, we want somebody to comfort us and be there for us and to say, 'Well done.' That's Jesus!"

The question that comes to mind is if God has all the glory, which He does, how then do we “give Him” glory? How can we give God something which is His in the first place?  First, we “ascribe” or give glory to Him because it is His due. No one else deserves the praise and worship that we give to glorify Him. Isaiah 42:8 confirms this: "I am the LORD; that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols.” Second, we are to “bring an offering” to God as part of the worship that glorifies Him. What is the offering we bring to God to glorify Him?  It is using whatever gift he has given us to share Him with others and to give Him the credit for our victories.  

When we tell of God’s work in our lives, how He saved us from sin, and the marvelous works He does in our hearts and minds every day, we glorify Him before others. Even though others don’t always want to hear our glorifying God, that should not stop us!!!! The crowd who heard Stephen hated what he said, covering their ears and rushing at him to stone him. “But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God” Acts 7:55.

John 14:15 says , "If you love me, you will obey my command."  Glorifying God and loving Him can't be separated!  If you love Him, tell somebody!!

Dear Lord, Help me to be bold today and share your gift of salvation with someone in need.  Help me recognize Your purpose for my life and Your plan for helping me fulfill that purpose.  In your name we pray Jesus, Amen.