“Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His Name together.” Psalm 34:3

Magnified

Some us of were sitting around the table having lunch together, talking about our teenaged kids. One mom was telling about the good choices her daughter was making when so many other girls her age were not. This mom humbly said, “She makes me look like a good parent.”

Of course, she IS a good parent. But I understood what she was saying. Even good parents can rear kids that go upside down for a time. I mean, look at God, our Father. No parent will ever parent better than He does, yet we, His kids, go upside down all the time.

This daughter’s lifestyle makes her parents look like good parents—as if they had done everything right. She obeys their rules, lives according to what they teach her, is pleasant and kind just as they are, and leaves an example for others to follow, as a beautiful, lingering fragrance.

What do other people think of our God and Father when they look at our lives? Do they see obedience in the face of temptation? Do they see us living by His example as set forth in His Word? Do they see a pleasant, kind, joyful, peaceful person who is conformed to His image? Do they see godly principles and ethics and morality?

Do we give others something worthy to imitate? “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1). What fragrance do we leave behind when we leave the room? “For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing” (2 Corinthians 2:15).

We magnify the Lord when we make Him look good. We make others think well of Him when our lives show we have a good teacher, a good guide, a good provider, a good listener, a good Father. 

Remember when you were a kid, and some kid bragged, “My dad’s better than your dad”? Even if I didn’t know that kid’s dad, I still thought highly of him, just on the kid’s say-so. Well, our Dad is better than them all. Let’s be sure we are saying so with our lives.

“Lord, You’re a good, good Father. Help us make You look as good as You really are. Let us properly represent You to others. May our lives magnify and exalt You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”