Tell the Glorious Deeds of the Lord

Written by Deb del Villar, Director of Communications

Psalm 78 is one of my very favorite psalms. It seems to become more and more dear as I age. Verses 1-8 are my favorites:

¹ Give ear, O my people, to my teaching;
incline your ears to the words of my mouth!
² I will open my mouth in a parable;
I will utter dark sayings from of old,
³ things that we have heard and known,
that our fathers have told us.
⁴ We will not hide them from their children,
but tell to the coming generation
the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might,
and the wonders that he has done.
⁵ He established a testimony in Jacob
and appointed a law in Israel,
which he commanded our fathers
to teach to their children,
⁶ that the next generation might know them,
the children yet unborn,
and arise and tell them to their children,
⁷ so that they should set their hope in God
and not forget the works of God,
but keep his commandments;
⁸ and that they should not be like their fathers,
a stubborn and rebellious generation,
a generation whose heart was not steadfast,
whose spirit was not faithful to God.

Dr. Warren Wiersbe has shared three responsibilities that God expects His people to fulfill are: protect the future, understand the past, and appreciate the present. These are great charges for us today as well!

Did you know that there is a day called Psalm 78 Day? (Learn more here)

Truth78 was established in 2020 to encourage Christians to consider and act on the words of Psalm 78. It is a vision-oriented ministry for the next generations—that they may know, honor, and treasure God, setting their hope in Christ alone, so that they will live as faithful disciples for the glory of God. 

Truth78 encourages families and churches to mark July 8 as a day to focus on God’s calling in Psalm 78. “What a tremendous challenge Psalm 78 gives one generation to tell the ‘glorious deeds of the LORD’ to the next,” says David Michael, Executive Director of Truth78. This ministry inspires and equips the church and home to fulfill what David calls the Psalm 78 mandate.

“God intends for His testimony to be taught to the next generations,” Michael says. “This testimony is the sum of God’s Word to His covenant people. It includes God’s glorious deeds, His might, the wonders that He has done, His perfect law, and the commandments given to His people for their good.”

Michael explains from Psalm 78 that parents were commanded to teach God’s testimony to their children so that every generation might know it. “One generation faithfully teaches the next generation, which then teaches the next generation, which teaches the next generation, and continues this pattern until Jesus returns,” he says. “This is the pattern God established for His people to make Himself, His Word, and the gospel known to all generations. Every follower of Christ has this calling on his life.” 

Their website is full of free resources to use with your family as well as your church. For example, they have a beautiful calligraphy poster of Psalm 78:4-7 available for download. The church resources include a promotional slide, press release, and bulletin insert. 

There is also a free PDF on 15 ways to declare the glorious deeds of the Lord to the next generation. A few of the creative ideas are to compose a song about God’s glorious deeds and sing it as a family, make a mural of God’s glorious deeds, or take a walk and observe God’s glorious deeds. On the list, you will certainly find one or more ways you could tell the glorious deeds of the Lord to your grandchildren. 

Additionally, there are ways to make the day special. There is a special hashtag so you can share what you are doing with others as well as see what they are doing. There is a video to watch about why Psalm 78 anchors the vision of Truth78, as well as daily prayers to pray that week.

Take the suggested prayers and tailor them to your grandchildren, bringing them before the Lord each day. They challenge you to memorize Psalm 78:4. Why not ask your grandchildren to memorize this verse right along with you? Challenge the older grandchildren to memorize Psalm 78:1-8.

Let’s join with others and make July 8^th a Psalm 78 day. May we be intentional in telling our grandchildren the glorious deeds of the Lord to help protect the future, understand the past, and appreciate the present. Psalm 78 was written so we would learn and heed the caution. We so easily forget – let us remember to remember!

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Editor’s Note: This content was adapted from Truth78’s website. You can learn more about Psalm 78 Day here!

Michael David and his wife, Sally, co-founded Truth78 (formerly Children Desiring God) with a strong commitment to casting vision and developing resources for the spiritual development of children in the home and at church. These resources reflect the passion for truth and the theological and doctrinal commitments that have marked the ministry of John Piper, who was David and Sally’s pastor and ministry colleague for 33 years. In 2019, after serving as a pastor for next generations in Indianapolis for 5 years, David transitioned to the role of executive director at Truth78 to focus on continuing to spread the vision and equip churches around the world. David and Sally have two adult daughters, a son-in-law, and three grandchildren. 

The ministry of Truth78 is oriented around the vision that the next generations know, honor, and treasure God, setting their hope in Christ alone, so that they will live as faithful disciples for the glory of God. Truth78 seeks to inspire and equip the church and the home for the comprehensive discipleship of the next generation.