We all probably know people who can’t take a compliment. You say something nice to them and they immediately brush it aside. Any positive observation about their behavior or their character is attributed to something else. Instead of a receiving a “thank you” when a kind word is spoken, they are apt to turn it around and compliment you in return.
While this self-deprecating behavior may seem godly and right, we can observe from Scripture an even better way to respond. Namely, when we receive a compliment we should recognize the commendable quality that has been observed in us is not due to our own inclinations. Instead, like any good thing, it comes from the Father above (James 1:17). Therefore it is He, and not us, that deserve the praise.
Daniel provides a wonderful example of this behavior. In Daniel 2, the king has had a dream that no one can interpret. Daniel prays that God would reveal the mystery of the dream to him and graciously, God does just that. (It is worthwhile noting that Daniel did not keep this prayer request to himself but he shared it with friends. Perhaps that is a post for another time.) When he goes to the king to interpret the dream Daniel had every opportunity to take credit for revealing what the king was desperate to know. Instead, he repeatedly and consistently gives God the acclaim. He realizes that God did not reveal the meaning of the dream to him so that Daniel would look good. Instead, God did so in order that Daniel may be a witness for Him and glorify Him in the land. The amazing thing is, when the king heard the interpretation and listened to Whom Daniel gave credit to, he also began to praise the Lord.
We may look at this story and think that it is obvious that God deserved the recognition; after all, He answered a specific request that Daniel and his friends made. However, what we should be careful to observe is that Daniel didn’t simply praise God privately for granting his petition. In a situation where he would have been honored and exalted for the work that he had done, he purposefully pointed the attention away from him and onto God. Before there was even the opportunity for him to take the recognition, he made sure that credit was given to the One to whom it was due.
Similarly, we would do well to give God praise for how He uses us for His purposes. Just like Daniel, this attribution shouldn’t be reserved for moments of quiet contemplation, but it should infiltrate even the very act for which we may receive commendation. In doing so we aren’t simply brushing aside any compliment, we are turning people’s attention away from us and what we did and onto the One who enables us to accomplish anything (see John 15:5). We are giving credit where it is due and just like Daniel and King Nebuchadnezzar, our hope should be that as a result, other people will also praise our King.