If you peruse through the Old Testament for any amount of time, one reads a lot about idols. It seems rather foreign to us today. Most of us don’t carve an object, place it in a special place in our home and worship it. In fact, to most… it would seem silly. After all, why worship a created thing instead of our Creator.
An idol is an object of worship, an object of devotion and what someone puts their faith in. As Christians, we know an idol to be a counterfeit god. When you look into who your god really is (whether it’s the one true God or a counterfeit god/idol), we see some of the following patterns:
- It guides your decisions.
- It reveals your worth and identity.
- It’s what you give your allegiance to.
- It’s what you think and talk about.
- It’s what you put your trust in.
- It’s what you give your time, talent and treasure to.
Most Christians would say they do not have idols. However, we may want to pause and reflect and see if this is actually true. Have we propped up idols in our lives? Do we have idols of the heart?
You may think I’m crazy for even suggesting this. But take an evaluatory moment with me.
Many Christian prop up the idol of pain. Pain, you might ask?? Yes, pain.
They’ve allowed their past pain and unforgiveness to become the major focus of their lives. In a sense, it has become their god. It has affected their allegiance, their beliefs and their unwillingness to surrender to God.
Let’s say it this way. When one props up the idol of pain or bitterness, and God no longer takes first place, then they cease to feel and experience His peace and presence. At this point, the destructive fire – a fire that consumes how one thinks, how one feels and how one views their yesterday, today and tomorrow – is fully all-consuming.
Maybe that’s your story… we can see that when pain becomes our god, it will make us into its very own image. Instead of bearing the image of God, we bear the image of pain. In doing so, we become bound to it telling us who we are, what decisions we must make and how we must operate. It affects how we view ourselves and how we interact with others.
The hurt against us must not turn us into a person we were never created to be – a person filled with anger, bitterness, brokenness or sadness. Yet, forgiveness releases the power of the offender over our lives and allows us to become what God intended us to be – a soul operating with peace, power and purpose.
We hold fast to our God, to His plans and to His unwavering faithfulness. We move forward emotionally and spiritually, refusing to let bitterness marinate in our hearts. We discharge any spiritual poison the enemy has tempted us to ingest in the past, and from this day forward we choose life, not death. We choose forgiveness and release, not death and bondage. We will walk in freedom.
Choosing to release pain and give it to God, removes the idol of pain in our lives.
Perhaps your idol isn’t pain … maybe it’s selfishness, pride, worry, fear or something else. Anything that consumes our thoughts, our beliefs, our identity and our purpose becomes our god. Let’s be diligent about removing anything that takes preeminence over God. It is positioning ourselves to be wholly filled with God that brings abundant life.
May we continue to live…
Rooted in Him,
