By Mike Caton

Exodus 18:10-11, “He said, ‘Praise be to the LORD, who rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians and of Pharaoh, and who rescued the people from the hand of the Egyptians. Now I know that the LORD is greater than all other gods, for he did this to those who had treated Israel arrogantly.’”

How vocal are we with our praise to the Lord? I know everyone is different, some folks are naturally louder and more expressive than others. Honestly, I am one of the more quiet folks. But that is not what I’m talking about. It is not a question of who is louder, who lifts their hands, or any of those “showy” things. (And I do not use that word in any negative context, we need to praise the Lord from our hearts, we need to forget others and even ourselves, and focus completely on honoring the Lord.) It is a matter of honestly worshiping the Lord from the heart.

But Jethro was not shy or bashful about his praise to the Lord here. He praised the Lord for the things the Lord had done. He is specific in his praise here; talking about how the Lord had rescued Moses from the Egyptians and then how he had rescued all of the Israelites. Remember, Moses had a run-in with the Egyptians before he left 40 years ago. He went back to Egypt as a wanted man. That had to make his demands to release the Israelites a little more tricky. And yet it was not Moses who was making the demands, it was the Lord, Moses was just the spokesman. And we realize it was not Moses who brought about the miracles, it was the Lord. And Moses had not parted the Red Sea, produced water, produced the manna and quail, it was all the Lord. Moses knew that, the Israelites knew that, and that is what Jethro is praising the Lord for.

We need to learn to praise the Lord more, and let others know what we are doing. Not that we are doing this for attention to ourselves, that was what the religious leaders in Jesus’ day did. No, we need to praise the Lord because of who he is, and we need to share that good news with those we are around. We need to let our lights shine so that others may praise our Father in heaven. It is not about drawing attention to self, it is about showing God to those around us.

Father, help my actions honor you. In Jesus name, amen.

Mike Caton is the preacher at Mount Olive Church of Christ in Belhaven. He volunteers at the Ponzer Fire Department and works as a full time AEMT with Hyde County EMS. If you would like to receive daily devotions in your inbox, email mikecaton@centurylink.net.

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