How to Do Everything for the Glory of God
You may have heard phrases like “Do everything for the glory of God!” or “Everything you do should glorify God.” These quotes sound really inspiring, but what do they actually mean? How do we live in a way that glorifies God?
What does it mean to glorify God?
The idea of glorifying God with everything you do actually comes directly from Scripture. First Corinthians 10:31 says, “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.”
Paul, the author of this epistle, is writing to the church in Corinth about the issue of eating food that is ritually sacrificed to idols. Many people within this church have fallen into sin because of how others are living in the culture around them. Paul explains to these believers that in Christ, they are free to eat any food (verse 25), but he also reminds them to consider the consciences of others who may feel differently and avoid partaking in anything that may cause another to sin.
“Everything is permissible,” writes Paul, “but not everything is beneficial. … No one is to seek his own good, but the good of the other person (1 Corinthians 10:23–24). Verse 31 is the culmination of this exhortation, as Paul tells the Corinthians to “do everything for the glory of God.”
Paul wants his audience to understand that glorifying God doesn’t just happen in church, or on a certain day of the week. Glorifying God can and should occur with every single action. Glorifying God is honoring Him with actions that are good and obedient—from the things that we say to the things that we eat and drink.
When we fall into sin and temptation, we do not glorify the Lord as we should. We must remember that each action holds weight in God’s eyes and we should honor Him with what we do.
How can we practically glorify God?
Glorifying God is more than just doing the “right” things. By living life only to do the right things, we can become overly moralistic and even seek our own glory above God’s. But our goal should be to give God the glory He deserves. Here are some ideas to help you glorify God today!
Spend Time with Him
God desires for us to be in fellowship with Him. He wants a meaningful relationship with us. We grow our relationships with others by spending intentional time with them. The same goes for our relationship with the Lord.
This can look like spending extended time in prayer, taking time to worship, being intentional with time in Scripture, or other spiritual disciplines! Spending time with God is one way we can give Him glory.
Live in Obedience
The Lord has set out specific commands and a way to live through His Word. When we obey what He has said, we are glorifying Him. As we read in 1 Corinthians, acting in a way that matches God’s commandments glorifies Him!
We can do this by intentionally serving others, avoiding sin and temptation, and having self-control.
Love Your Neighbor
Loving our neighbor is also one of the ways we can give God glory. Jesus was constantly serving others, and we are called to follow that example. By serving those around us, we can be obedient to the Lord and give Him glory. This can look like serving at church, getting involved with serving your community, intentionally praying for others, etc.
Giving the Lord glory through our actions is so important and shows our love for Him!
