The Oogah Problem

I bought a Jeep.

That sentence alone probably explains a lot.

There is something about a Jeep that makes a person start thinking differently. You don’t just drive a Jeep. You personalize it. You tinker with it. You look for little ways to make it yours. Some people add lights. Some add bigger tires. Some add winches, racks, decals, or all kinds of other accessories.

I decided my Jeep needed a better horn.

For a little while, I considered installing a train horn. I have to admit, the idea sounded fun. There is something tempting about having that kind of power at your fingertips. One push of a button and everyone around you knows you are there.

But I decided that might be a little much.

So I settled on an old-timey “oogah” horn.

And I love it.

I blow that horn all the time. I blow it when I see somebody I know. I blow it when I pull into the driveway. I blow it when the car in front of me doesn’t move quite fast enough. I may or may not blow it occasionally when my wife walks in front of the Jeep, because it makes her jump.

That horn makes me smile every single time.

But here is the problem.

Not everyone loves my horn as much as I do.

What sounds fun to me may sound obnoxious to someone else. What makes me laugh may make somebody else roll their eyes. What feels like originality to me may sound like unnecessary noise to those around me.

That horn draws attention to the Jeep. It gets noticed. But not all attention is good attention. Not every sound that gets heard is appreciated. Sometimes what sounds good to us is just noise to everyone else.

And that is a pretty good picture of something many of us struggle with.

We like to toot our own horn.

We may not call it that or even recognize it when we are doing it, but somewhere deep inside us is a desire to be noticed, affirmed, applauded, and appreciated. We want people to see what we have done or recognize how hard we have worked. We want them to know what we think, how we feel, and where we stand.

Every conversation becomes an opportunity to blow the horn.

Every accomplishment becomes a reason to make sure people know.

So blessings become a social media post.

Every thought and opinion must be shared.

Sometimes, we even dress it up in spiritual language.

We are “just sharing what God has done.” And sometimes that is true. There is nothing wrong with sharing how good and faithful God is. Scripture is full of God’s people remembering and proclaiming His works.

But we also have to be honest enough to examine our hearts.

Sometimes what we call “sharing a blessing” is really just bragging with a Bible verse attached to it. What we call “giving God glory” may still leave the attention on us. Wat we frame as humility is really just a well-polished humble brag.

The people around us can usually hear the difference.

Jesus speaks directly to this in Matthew 6.

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 6:1).

Jesus is not merely addressing sinful behavior. He is addressing righteous behavior done for sinful reasons.

Even good things can become corrupted when the motive shifts from honoring God to being noticed by people.

Jesus continues by talking about those who gave in such a way that everyone would see it. He speaks about those who prayed in public places so they would be admired. He mentions those who fasted in a way that made sure everyone knew how spiritual they were.

In other words, they were blowing the horn.

They wanted people to notice, hear, and be impressed. They wanted applause for their spirituality.

And Jesus says they already have their reward.

That ought to give us pause before hitting the horn.

If our goal is to be noticed by people, we may succeed. People may compliment us, like the post, and admire us. They may even talk about how wise, spiritual, talented, or important we are.

But Jesus reminds us that the applause of people is a very small reward compared to the approval of the Father.

The real question is not, “Did people notice?” but rather, “Was God pleased?”

That question changes everything.

It changes how we live. It changes how we post. It changes how we speak. It changes how we enter conversations. It changes how we handle blessings, accomplishments, and opinions.

Because if God sees, then I do not have to make sure everyone else does.

That is the heart of Matthew 6.

Jesus is not telling us to never do anything publicly. He is not saying every visible act of faithfulness is automatically prideful. Earlier in Matthew, Jesus said we are to let our light shine before men so that they may see our good works and glorify our Father who is in heaven.

The issue is not whether something is seen.

The issue is who gets the glory.

Am I pointing people to God, or am I pointing them to me?

Am I speaking because it is helpful, or because I need to be heard?

Am I sharing because it encourages others, or because I want attention?

Am I giving testimony to God’s grace, or am I subtly inviting people to admire my life?

Those are hard questions to ask, but they are necessary ones.

Truth is, most of us probably need to lay off the horn more than we do.

There is a time to speak. There is a time to celebrate. There is a time to share what God has done. There is a time to give testimony. There is even a time to blow the horn.

An “oogah” every once in a while can be appropriate.

But an “oogah” all the time gets old.

Here is the thing about horns: if you blow them for everything, people eventually stop hearing them for anything. What was once distinct becomes background noise. What was supposed to get attention becomes something people tune out.

That happens with our words too.

If every conversation is about us, people stop listening. If every post points back to us, people begin to scroll on past. If every opinion must be announced, people stop hearing our voice. If every interaction becomes self-promotion, even our good intentions can become exhausting to those around us.

Humility does not mean pretending God has not blessed us.

Humility means remembering that every blessing is ultimately about Him.

Humility does not mean refusing to speak.

Humility means knowing when our words are helpful and when silence might be wiser.

We do not have to announce everything, be the center of every story, or insert ourselves into every issue. We do not have to make sure people see how spiritual, successful, thoughtful, wise, or blessed we are.

Maybe, when the moment is right and the motive is clean, we can give a little “oogah” of testimony to the goodness of God.

Most of the time, we would probably do well to keep our hands off the horn and let our lives point quietly and faithfully to Him.