“…we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord…” Psalm 78:3

It seems to me that Christmas is a season laden with rich opportunity to see and experience praiseworthy deeds of the Lord.  For some reason, it is a time where hearts, ears and eyes readily search for evidence of the Presence of something larger and more lovely than themselves.

We are just shy of two weeks past Christmas morn’, and throughout this season, I have been continually drawn back to the idea of sharing the praiseworthy deeds that I have witnessed over the last few weeks.  As I have contemplated writing, the task has felt a bit daunting.  There’s no sufficient way to communicate how incredible it is to watch God quietly move through lives leaving blessings here and there, some without even noticing…

As I returned to Psalm 78 to refresh my memory of these verses, I was reminded of the instruction that God repeatedly gives those who are His: share and tell of His goodness.  Talk about Him as you gather.  Tell it to your children and your children’s children.  Over and over again, we find His word imparting upon us the need to speak of His deeds, His faithfulness, His instructions and His ways.

In fact in Psalm 78:3, it speaks of our duty to “tell” the next generation of His praiseworthy deeds.  It is interesting that we are instructed to “tell” rather than list.  Quite frankly, it seems much easier to “list” what we’ve seen or heard God do.  I can rattle off a list much faster than telling you the story behind what’s on the list.  With bullet point accuracy, you can shorten things to a succinct set of words that remind you of what has been done.  The problem is that when we do that others will miss out on the greater story that lies behind that concise expression.  Lists do not allow others to see or know all that we saw when He gave us the privilege of seeing Him move.  Hence, why they need to be told.

To “tell” is “to give an account or narrative of; narrate; relate (a story, tale, etc…).  It is to “announce or proclaim.”  It involves revealing, identifying, distinguishing, ascertaining, and informing.  At its core is “to give evidence.”  Most profound is the idea that the foundation of “tell” is “to relate”.  See Tell.  Telling requires us to engage with others.  To think, discuss and help work through the details of these moments that we’ve seen God so that they, too, can know and understand better His Presence in this world.

Narratives need details.  To say we saw the hand of God move today does little to express how or what we saw.  Proclaiming that God exists is not the same as helping another soul actually connect the dots of the evidence He leaves for us to find and follow.  Telling is how we help the the next generation come to trust Him and our words.  And listing, commanding, and dictating are not the same as telling.  Telling develops stories through detailed thought, time and togetherness. It requires patience, inquisitiveness, and the ability to hold another’s attention long enough for a message to get through.

Yet, it is what God instructs us to do to build up faith in our generation and to pass it along to the next.  Right now, the organization I run just finished up a busy Christmas season.  With those preparations comes all sorts of souls to volunteer, and I found myself again recounting many amazing stories of God’s movement over the years.  I could succinctly get from Point A to Point B in the most direct way but I would convey little about God’s movement in that process, even though He is the way we got from A to B.  Rather, it is when I “tell” the stories–engage the details–that wonder crosses the faces of those I am speaking with.  It is those details, not the summary, that moistens their eyes and softens their hearts to His very-present grace.  It is in the telling that faith blooms, strengthens and refreshes.  Anything else–more or less–does a disservice to the very efforts He goes to reach and move souls…

Ironically to the struggle I have had over the last several years, when I was little, I loved to create story books.  I would fold up several sheets of paper and create my own little book that often included hand-drawn illustrations.  I’d burst into my parents’ room on the weekends to share with them my newest story.  I am not sure at what point I put that practice down, but it is not lost on me that early on in life, I loved to write and tell stories…

This past year has been a slow return to that passion, coupled with bouts of doubt and uncertainty of an adult who has outgrown that child-like confidence and trust that abounded in those storybooks.  What I am confident of–what He has had me do for a long time now–is the telling of God’s praiseworthy deeds, whether through speaking or writing.  It is a crucial part of the journey of building faith.  To be honest, without the telling, there is no record.  And without a record, there’s nothing to build faith on.

So, start out the new year by looking back and pondering the stories that have unfolded before you.  Let us put to words the imagery we have caught sight of and tenderly speak of His praiseworthy deeds to those willing to listen.  Right now, our world, and all of the generations in it, desperately need to see His glory so that they may come to believe that He is true, real and right here.

“Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget His deeds but would keep His commands.”  Psalm 78:7