Desire Glory or Grease

This post is going to cover what God has been working in my heart for a while – specifically this past week as I prepared a sermon for my preaching class. I hope it challenges and encourages you. May God get all the praise.

Most of us know about David, one of the greatest studs of the Old Testament. His resume reads: defeated the mighty giant Goliath, greatest king of Israel and ancestor of Jesus. Despite his many accomplishments, David’s greatest achievement is that he was commended by God himself as a man after his (God’s) own heart.

God’s heart and David’s heart were similar, so understanding David’s helps us grasp a better understanding of God’s. A great way to study this heart is by reading the many psalms that David authored during his journey with God. This week I marinated like a big sirloin in Psalm 57 mainly as I prepared a message.

"Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth."

The message of Psalm 57 and many others is that God’s #1 goal is to proclaim His Holy Name. I saw this as I studied Psalm 57 and David, who at this part of life was struggling. David’s confident hope through this part of his life was the Exaltation of God and His Glorification! This is a huge point that David got and I believe that we must get today as God’s children.

• God’s purpose for David was to glorify Himself thorough his life.

• God’s purpose for you is to glorify Himself thorough your life.


• God’s purpose for your ministry (wherever he has placed you [both in a church & office) is to glorify Himself through that ministry.


• God’s purpose for mankind is to glorify Himself though each one.

As Christians, we are the vessels that He works to fill the earth with His Glory. Truly grasping this changes our heart and directs us down a different path. The world’s way is to get fame for yourself. God’s way is to get fame for Himself.

The desire of God’s heart is the exaltation of himself and his glorification.

*Today’s American church desperately needs to regain the vision of displaying God’s glory over numbers in attendance, big building projects and any other earthly accumulation that we strive for. I have recently read about a church that spent a time of prayer to pray for what God would have them give to the church to purchase a grease pit (not sure what it does, but it cost $20,000), also a new digital sign (also $20,000) and a few other things.

This BROKE my heart and I believe that it broke the heart of God. Can those things bring Glory to God? Yes. But the true question is why not spend time on your knees praying for how God would want a church to do ministry, be out in the community and use money given over a budget to reach the people on the outside (both locally and worldwide. $20,000, $40,000 and more could be used in a million different ways to display God’s Glory. Hopefully we would choose to use it in whatever way it would have the most effective impact. A church has been issued the mission to be in the people business (not building), but many Christians (pastors and members) have lost that vision. We have so missed the mark.

This is true because many single mothers, struggling teens, hard-hearted men, poverty stricken, least and lost people in each community are not better off because there is a gathering of believers that meets in that community each week. We have a Savior who can change their lives, but they don’t know because we don’t show and tell them.

In order to see the blessing of God and His power return, I believe that each person of a church should bow and ask God what he would have them do to BE the church.

I pray that God would make our hearts overflow with a passion to exalt Him above the heavens and fill the earth with His Glory. (Ps. 57:5 & 11)

My Prayer: Oh God, break our heart for what breaks your heart. Form our heart to be in the likeness of your heart. Help me be bold so that I can be a light in my dark city.