Give Credit Where Credit Is Due
By J.B. Hixson, Ph.D.
05/17/2021
The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but deliverance is of the LORD. (Proverbs 21:31)
Perhaps you have heard the story about the ambitious and self-important dog, Shadow. It seems Shadow’s family was visiting Florida for summer vacation. Each morning, as Shadow and his owner took a walk on the beach, they would watch the sunrise. As the sun slowly appeared over the horizon, the dog would raise his head toward the sky and bark for several minutes. Shadow honestly believed he was helping or even forcing the sun to rise. After a few minutes, when the sun was in full bloom over the ocean, the dog would walk away with an air of confidence thinking that he had intimidated that large orange ball into rising high above the water. How ridiculous, right?
Yet there is a spiritual lesson here. When we take credit for the simple blessings in our life, we are forgetting who is in charge. Solomon tells us, “The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but deliverance is of the LORD” (Proverbs 21:31). Sometimes we think our circumstances are the result of our own efforts or plans when really God deserves the credit.
This reminds me of an experience we had as a family years ago. Wendy and I took our two oldest girls, Bethany and Brooke, horseback riding at a dude ranch in central Texas. Bethany and I were on one horse and Brooke and Wendy were on the other. Although none of us was an experienced rider, it did not take long for us to learn that with a few simple commands and timely tugs on the reins, we could control the horse’s behavior. As the horses trotted along the path through the meadows, I wonder if they thought they were the ones dictating which direction we went. I wonder if they thought they were the ones in control. Perhaps they did. That is, until one of us tugged on the reins and hollered “Whoa!”
As we go through life we often have a tendency to take hold of the reins. We must be careful to remember that the Lord is the one who is ultimately in control. Everyone likes a pat on the back, but we must not linger too long at the altar of pride lest we begin to think we did it all by ourselves. It is our job to prepare the horse for battle. That is, we have a responsibility to do our part. But in the end, if we are fortunate enough to receive a favorable result in our endeavor, we must give credit where credit is due. Let us say with David, “Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let Your glory be above all the earth” (Psalm 57:5).
05/17/2021
The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but deliverance is of the LORD. (Proverbs 21:31)
Perhaps you have heard the story about the ambitious and self-important dog, Shadow. It seems Shadow’s family was visiting Florida for summer vacation. Each morning, as Shadow and his owner took a walk on the beach, they would watch the sunrise. As the sun slowly appeared over the horizon, the dog would raise his head toward the sky and bark for several minutes. Shadow honestly believed he was helping or even forcing the sun to rise. After a few minutes, when the sun was in full bloom over the ocean, the dog would walk away with an air of confidence thinking that he had intimidated that large orange ball into rising high above the water. How ridiculous, right?
Yet there is a spiritual lesson here. When we take credit for the simple blessings in our life, we are forgetting who is in charge. Solomon tells us, “The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but deliverance is of the LORD” (Proverbs 21:31). Sometimes we think our circumstances are the result of our own efforts or plans when really God deserves the credit.
This reminds me of an experience we had as a family years ago. Wendy and I took our two oldest girls, Bethany and Brooke, horseback riding at a dude ranch in central Texas. Bethany and I were on one horse and Brooke and Wendy were on the other. Although none of us was an experienced rider, it did not take long for us to learn that with a few simple commands and timely tugs on the reins, we could control the horse’s behavior. As the horses trotted along the path through the meadows, I wonder if they thought they were the ones dictating which direction we went. I wonder if they thought they were the ones in control. Perhaps they did. That is, until one of us tugged on the reins and hollered “Whoa!”
As we go through life we often have a tendency to take hold of the reins. We must be careful to remember that the Lord is the one who is ultimately in control. Everyone likes a pat on the back, but we must not linger too long at the altar of pride lest we begin to think we did it all by ourselves. It is our job to prepare the horse for battle. That is, we have a responsibility to do our part. But in the end, if we are fortunate enough to receive a favorable result in our endeavor, we must give credit where credit is due. Let us say with David, “Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let Your glory be above all the earth” (Psalm 57:5).
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