The Butler Did It

Giving God the glory

Genesis 1: 27-31

God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them, saying: “Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things that move on the earth.” God also said: “See, I give you every seed-bearing plant all over the earth and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit on it to be your food; and to all the animals of the land, all the birds of the air, and all the living creatures that crawl on the ground, I give all the green plants for food.” And so it happened. God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good.

             Every now and then, we do something really spectacular.  But to whom do we give the credit for the achievement?  Did you watch the Superbowl?  Malcolm Butler made a stunning interception to give the Patriots the victory.  I think he was almost as surprised as everyone else, and on the sidelines, he kept looking up and pointing to heaven, as if to say, “God made this possible.”  One headline read, “The Butler did it!”  But the Butler blamed God; he gave God the glory.  A couple of weeks ago, the No. 1 male tennis player, Novak Djokovic, won his fifth Australian Open.  He’s affectionately called “The Joker,” and I love to watch him play.  But I hate to watch him win!  He basks in the adulation of the crowds, and seems to hoard all the glory for himself.  I’m sorry if I’m too hard on the Joker.  But when we do something great, who gets the glory?

             The first reading from Genesis is the account of creation, and God also does something pretty great.  He creates everything with his divine bare hands, and then Genesis says: “God looked at everything he had made and found it very good.”  But, you know, God really wasn’t finished with creation on the sixth day, because he made a co-creator, man and woman, who would continue God’s work of creation down the centuries.  That’s why we call having a baby “procreation,” because every mom and dad shares in God’s original work of creation.  In other words, God didn’t want to hoard all the glory of creation for himself; he wanted to share it with us.  Like Malcolm Butler, God pointed at earth and looked down at us and said: “You make creation possible, too.”  And I think God winks at us, when we do something great.

             You know, eventually everyone does something superlative.  You may not win the Superbowl or the Australian Open.  But you may finally get grandma’s spaghetti sauce recipe just right.  You may land that deal with a client that takes your company to the next level.  You may finally give a sermon that someone doesn’t sleep through.  Or, you may just get through a whole day without screaming at your children.  When those monumental moments happen, who will you be like: the Butler or the Joker?  Will you give the glory to God or hoard it for yourself?  God created you in his image and likeness, which means he made you a co-creator, give him a little credit.  Next time you do something great, do like the Butler and blame God: point at heaven, look up and wink.

            Praised be Jesu

s Christ!