April 30 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Devotional

If you were brought up in a Christian, perhaps Calvinistic, home, you must have been told often that we live for the glory of God. Your parents said it about play and work, about plants and animals, even about eating and drinking. It's all for God's glory. That's why the world exists. That's the reason people are on this planet. We heard it so often.

We did not dare say it, but to some of us this idea that God has ordained all things to his glory seemed a sort of almighty selfishness. Then we were ignorant. Now we know that God's design is his almighty love.

We are now beginning to understand—a little. We have found that the rare moments when people are genuinely happy are those in which they can spontaneously say, "Praise the Lord, my soul. Let all that is in me adore you." These are the moments in which we have nothing to ask. Our cup is simply overflowing. We bring thanksgiving to God.

The rule is deeply written in human life: we must be unhappy until we find our joy in God. You can see this rule confirmed in the lives of complaining people who are endlessly busy with themselves. As soon as they begin to care for someone else, a bit of a song comes into their lives—the first hint of healing. It is the age-old rule that a person who lives for himself is seeking joy where it can never be found.

Nobody lives unto himself and nobody dies unto himself. Neither people nor angels are independent enough for this kind of life. But I do not live for my neighbor, nor was my neighbor created for me. All of us have been created for God. And it is only when we give ourselves to God that we also find each other. All of life's goals are reached when all places and all people bless the Lord.

Life will end around a throne. The closing song is a doxology. And the art of living is learning the song of glory while we are on our way.

REFLECTIONS

Recall the last time you spontaneously praised the Lord. Are you learning "the song of glory" while on your way to glory?

Andrew Kuyvenhoven's Daylight, a modern devotional classic, was originally published by Paideia Press in 1977. This updated edition is copyright 2009 by Faith Alive Christian Resources. You can order a copy of this revised version of the book directly from the publisher.

A man of many accomplishments, Andrew Kuyvenhoven is probably best known for his contributions to Today (formerly The Family Altar), a widely-used monthly devotional booklet associated with the Back to God Hour. Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations for this updated edition of Daylight are from the Holy Bible: Today's New International Version copyright 2001, 2005 by the International Bible Society.