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There’s an old North American fable about a young brave who discovered an eagle’s egg and decided to play a curious trick. He placed the egg in a prairie chicken’s nest, and when it hatched, the young eagle grew up believing he was nothing more than a common prairie chicken. He clucked, cackled, and scratched in the dirt for insects and grain. He never flew more than a few feet off the ground.

One day, the young eagle looked up and saw a magnificent bird soaring high above. “What a beautiful bird!” he exclaimed. An older chicken replied, “That’s an eagle, the king of the air. Don’t give it a second thought—you could never be like that.” And so the eagle returned to scratching in the dirt, living his entire life as a prairie chicken, never discovering what he truly was.

This poignant story captures something profound about human existence. We were made for something wonderful, something greater than ourselves, something magnificent. We were designed to know glory—God’s glory.

What Is Glory?

The concept of glory threads throughout Scripture like golden thread through fine tapestry. In Isaiah 6, the angels cry out, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. Heaven and earth are full of his glory.” Notice the connection between holiness and glory. Glory is essentially how God displays His holiness for all creation to witness.

One theologian described it beautifully: “The glory of God is the infinite beauty and greatness of God’s manifold perfections.” It encompasses God’s holiness, His presence, His character, His very essence. In the Hebrew, the word is “kabod,” translated in Greek as “doxa”—something weighty, significant, majestic.

Throughout Scripture, we encounter God’s glory in powerful ways. It filled the tabernacle in the wilderness and Solomon’s temple. It appeared as a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night leading the Israelites through the desert. The prophet Ezekiel had visions of it that left him overwhelmed.

But glory isn’t just some abstract theological concept. We see God’s glory displayed through creation itself. Psalm 19 declares, “The heavens declare the glory of God.” We witness it in His promises, His miracles, His mercy. And ultimately, we encounter God’s glory most fully in the person of Jesus Christ.

Glory Breaks Into Ordinary Life

Consider the shepherds in Luke 2. On a cloudless night, these ordinary workers were tending their flocks when suddenly an angel appeared, and “the glory of the Lord shone around them.” The text tells us they were terrified—literally panicked. This wasn’t some gentle, comforting glow. This was the radiant, overwhelming, weighty presence of the Almighty breaking into their ordinary existence.

Why shepherds? Perhaps because God goes to those who have time to hear Him. On that night, He came to simple, ordinary people doing their ordinary work.

The angel’s message was extraordinary: “Don’t be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.” Then suddenly, a multitude of heavenly hosts appeared, glorifying God and declaring, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

When the angels departed, the shepherds hurried to Bethlehem. They found not a king on a throne but a baby in a feeding trough. Yet having witnessed this sign, they couldn’t help but share what they’d seen and heard. They left “glorifying and praising God”—just like the angels.

The Glory Made Flesh

The apostle John wrote something profound about Jesus: “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

The book of Hebrews describes Jesus as radiating God’s own glory. This word “radiance” is significant—it means a shining force, not a reflected light. You cannot separate the sun from its radiance. Similarly, Jesus isn’t merely a messenger of God’s glory; He is the very embodiment of God’s glory. He makes the invisible God visible.

How We Glorify God

So how do we, as ordinary people living ordinary lives, glorify God?

First, we are image-bearers. We reflect God’s nature and character through transformed lives. The Holy Spirit works in us to produce fruit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. When we live compassionate lives, when we pursue honesty and justice, when we extend mercy and forgiveness even to those who don’t deserve it, we reflect God’s character to the watching world.

Second, we glorify God through obedience. When we align our behavior with God’s desires, when we walk in His ways, we honor Him. It’s not about rigid rule-keeping but about a loving relationship that naturally produces right living.

Third, we glorify God through gratitude. As the Westminster Shorter Catechism states, “Man’s chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.” God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him. When we find our deepest joy, our greatest contentment, our truest satisfaction in God Himself, we bring Him glory.

Revealing Your True Colors

Consider the colors of autumn—those brilliant reds, oranges, yellows, and golds. Here’s something fascinating: leaves don’t actually change color in autumn. All through spring and summer, their true colors are masked by the green pigment of chlorophyll. When autumn comes and the tree stops producing chlorophyll, the green fades and the true colors emerge.

This serves as a beautiful metaphor for spiritual growth. Christian maturity is the continued unveiling of our true colors—colors divinely given to us the moment we trust Christ. These colors are nothing less than those of God Himself.

The apostle Paul wrote, “We all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”

Living in the Light of Glory

We were not made to be prairie chickens, scratching in the dirt, never rising higher than mediocrity. We were made for glory—to know God’s glory, to reflect His glory, to be transformed by His glory.

Christmas reminds us that glory came down. The infinite God made Himself small, entering our world as a vulnerable baby. The shepherds witnessed heaven’s glory breaking into earth’s darkness. And that same glory—full of grace and truth—is available to us today.

As we stand in whatever season of life we find ourselves, we have the enormous privilege of beholding God’s glory in the face of Christ. Through His Spirit dwelling in us, we are being changed from one degree of glory to another. Not for our own sake, but so that God alone might receive the glory He deserves.

That’s what we were made for. That’s who we truly are.