In Your Own Words
Thursday (October 23)
In Your Own Words
Psalm 29:1-2
Ascribe to the LORD, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength. Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name.
Have you ever stopped to ponder the power of words? The reality is that human speech is one of the most studied, most ambiguous, most mysterious forms of power in the universe, and people from all persuasions have dipped their toes into the shallow end of the mystery in hopes of understanding it. On the one hand, certain mystics erroneously conclude that humans have the power to speak things into existence. They’ll use terms like ‘manifestation’ to describe the way we project a vision of what we want our lives to be and then speak that vision into the universe. Crazy, I know, but the other extreme isn’t any better. Certain materialists who don’t believe in any spiritual reality argue that human speech isn’t a connection to deep God-given meaning but just a bunch of guttural noises and animalistic gestures. To them, a dog barking and Romeo expressing to Juliet “I love you!” are of the same kind.
Well, the fact is, our speech contains two significant powers from God, and both are aspects of the verb David uses here in Psalm 29, “to ascribe.” Consider that even birds and dolphins communicate with each other, and even crickets and ants express instinctual needs through their gesticulations, but no other earthy creature ascribes anything by these sounds. To ascribe meaning is first to recognize the invisible spiritual reality inherent to a thing, and then to connect that meaning in a personal way. For instance, you’re able to visit a chihuahua adoption center and call the animals there ‘dogs’ rather than mistaking them for roaches or tractors, which is the first power of ascription; but you go even further when you take that dog home with you and ascribe it a name like ‘Patches’ or ‘Ginger’ or ‘Spot.’ That’s the point David is bringing out in Psalm 29:1-2. He first proclaims the objective truth of God’s character: “You, O LORD, are glorious and strong!”, but then he brings that connection home by personalizing it: “You, O LORD, are glorious to me!”
In light of that, friend, let’s go to the LORD right now and spend a few moments ascribing the glory due Him in our own words.