Cosmic Plagiarism?

Continuing with the theme of life challenging lessons, C.J. Mahaney continues to point out inadequacies in my life in his book (Humility). Chapter six has an intriguing idea: Cosmic Plagiarism. What's that? Well, he prefaces it by giving a story about some famous writers who were accused of plagiarism for their works and he begs the question: "Do we plagiarize God?" God, the creator of the universe, created us and everything in our lives should be attributed to him. He deserves all the "citing." I wonder how many times I plagiarize God and take credit for something that he does without mentioning him.

This illustration really made me evaluate my pride problem. We, as Christians have A LOT to be thankful for. I am probably the most ungrateful person in the world so this challenge is extremely difficult for me to hear. The truth is, we don't have anything to brag about. The Bible even tells us that our righteousness is like filthy rags to God. What makes me think that I'm so great? What gives me the right to believe that my gifts and talents are because of my own hard work and ability?

I offer this same challenge to you: Let's stop plagiarizing God and give him the glory that he is due! If we are constantly focusing on his glory rather than our own, we're beginning to understand what it means to live a humble life that seeks to worship God rather than ourselves.
I leave you with this verse, be encouraged:
Psalm 34:2 "My soul shall make its boast in the Lord; The humble shall hear it and rejoice."