Honor belongs to him

Honor the Lord, you heavenly beings; honor the Lord for his glory and strength. Honor the Lord for the glory of his name. Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness. (Psalm 29:1-2)

Honor is something we give to another, but we should never seek it for ourselves. When it comes to God, we first recognize he is worthy of all honor, then we 'ascribe' it to him - we declare it in our minds, hearts, and even our actions. Unlike us humans, he actually deserves that honor! Unlike humans, his 'right' for honor never fades and it is not 'circumstantial'. In other words, he deserves it because he is always consistent, never changing, and divine through and through. 

How or when do we honor God in our lives? I think it could begin the minute we begin to speak with him about anything at all. When we consider the words of prayer, are they filled with honor? Do we exalt his name and honor him with our words? Even our songs should bring honor to his name. This is why it is so powerful to enter into worship and praise. It exalts him - revealing that we are giving him his rightful place in our lives to rule and reign as our Lord God Almighty. 

How about those times when we share something really awesome God has done in our lives? Those words come easily, don't they? They proclaim the goodness of his activity on our behalf - having 'done' something that we both appreciate and rejoice over. Do these things have to be 'big' things? No, but a word of caution here. We can become so 'rote' in our 'praise' of God that the words we share are almost 'hollow'. The term "God is Good" with the response "All the Time" can become a matter of 'rote praise' if we allow it. We must always ensure that our praise or testimony of his actions in our lives is genuine, heartfelt, and reveals the true honor he deserves.

Worship is giving honor, but it is very specific. It is done intentionally. We don't 'enter into worship' by just singing along with the worship leaders at church on Sunday. We 'enter into worship' when our hearts are behind the words, our minds are focused on his goodness, and our emotions are given over to praising him with all our being. Worship can be quite engaging, but we might just miss out on something God will do in those times if we aren't worshiping him 'in spirit and in truth'. Just sayin!