Your memoir: An act of worship

 

You can almost hear trumpets sounding . . . and bells ringing . . . and angels singing. It’s glorious!

 

I’m talking about 1 Chronicles 16. Have you read it lately?

 

If not, take a few minutes to read it below—you’ll be glad you did!

 

It’s a song of thanksgiving to God, penned by David for the Israelites.

 

“Give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name;

make known . . . what he has done.

Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts. . . .

Remember the wonders he has done. . . .

Declare his glory. . . his marvelous deeds. . . .

For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise. . . .

Splendor and majesty are before him;

strength and joy in his dwelling place.

Ascribe to the Lord. . . the glory due his name.

Bring an offering before him;

worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness. . . .

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

his love endures forever.

And when David finished, “Then all the people shouted ‘Amen’ and ‘Praise the Lord.’” What a worship service! I wish I could have stood among that congregation.

 

And, as if that’s not enough—what’s even more exciting

is that we are doing the same things in our memoirs! 

In our stories,

we are telling others the wonders God has done

and his marvelous deeds on our behalf.

In our memoir stories, we are declaring his glory.

In the process, we are praising him,

“Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise!”

 

One sentence especially grabbed hold of my heart: “Bring an offering before him; worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness.”

 

I encourage you to lift up to God

(1) your process of writing, and

(2) your finished stories—

lift them up to God as your offering to him.

 

Francine Rivers says to Christian writers:

 

“It is essential to study Scripture. Immerse yourself in God’s Word. . . . The Bible is full of God’s wisdom, and His Word will transform you as a person and as a writer. The goal is to have the reader experience God’s Truth through story—to challenge, convict, encourage. . . .

 

“Don’t give up!” she continues. “Let writing be another way to worship the Lord. Give all of yourself as a thank offering.” 

 

And, when you’ve finished writing your memoir, hand your stories to your readers as an offering to the Lord, too.

 

Do it as an act of worshiping him in the splendor of his holiness. What a privilege we have to honor God in this way.

 

And we, the writers, together with our readers,

shout, Amen! And Praise the Lord!