We give God Glory, or we glorify God, by trusting Him in the good times as well as the bad times. It’s impossible to please God without faith. We also glorify God when we confess sin and repent. We give God the Glory in our personal worship, but with more passion, vigor, and enthusiasm in our corporate worship because we inspire each other to praise Him. There are other ways that we can glorify God as well. The Bible gives us many other ways by which we can give Glory to God.
Our good deeds can bring glory to God. John 15:8 says, “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples’ The fruit Jesus had in mind is the fruit of good works. So give God the glory by feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, healing the sick, loving the orphans, and helping everyone in need. When we share our faith in God with us we also give God glory. 1 Chronicles says, “declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples.” We glorify God with our talents, gifts and abilities as well. Historically, great artists and composers focused their talents on making God central in their efforts. One man who did this was Johann Sebastian Bach, who signed his compositions “S. D. G.,” which stands for soli Deo gloria, “to God alone be the glory.” Another good example is the jazz musician Duke Ellington, who wrote Concerts of Sacred Music. Bach and Ellington wrote and played their music to the glory of God. Not many of us are as talented or gifted in any area as these two were in music, but whatever our gifts is we give glory to God when we use it for Him.
I like the way Ryken concludes his discussion on the many ways we can bring glory to God. He writes, “Glorify God in your play by resting in his goodness. Glorify him in your work by working with all your strength. Glorify him in the menial tasks of the home. God receives glory whenever a dish is washed, a floor is mopped, a newspaper is recycled, or even a diaper is changed in his name. In short, glorify God in any and every activity of life by doing it in his service and according to his will. “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31).