In his latest book, “Gods at War”, Kyle Idleman makes a bold statement. He says, “What we are searching for and chasing after reveals the god that is winning the war in your heart.” As followers of Jesus we claim to worship Him alone as God. The truth is we all battle with idolatry, just as every generation before us has done. Our idols may look different these days, but anything that we put before God is an idol. We have forgotten that God is fiercely jealous and refuses to share the throne of our hearts with anyone or anything else.
In most of our minds, the word “idol” conjures up images of a statue or a shrine. Satan rarely uses such forms of idolatry in our day. Instead he has cleverly fostered a culture that finds idolatry manifesting itself in far more subtle ways. We don’t often think of food, money, career, sex, status, or entertainment as idols, but these are the things that many of us allow to take the place of God in our lives. When you get stressed out, is your default reaction comfort food or seeking comfort in God? When you feel desperate and lonely, do you seek to numb the pain in various addictions or cast the pain at the feet of Jesus? Our emotional defaults reveal who or what we are truly worshipping.
Any time we choose to find solace, peace, or fulfillment in something other than God, we have an idol in our life. God is big enough to be everything that you need. He longs for you to turn to Him in your toughest and darkest moments. Trying to find fulfillment in anything other than Him breaks His heart, and breaks our fellowship with Him. Anything on earth that brings happiness or satisfaction will quickly fade. Only God and his love will endure.
Every second of every minute of every hour of every day is a choice. It’s a choice to serve Him, to glorify Him, to worship Him, to love Him… or not. Every waking moment we must choose whom we will serve. We can serve the God of the Universe, the one true God, or we can serve pathetic imitations that have no power and provide no lasting satisfaction. The gallon of ice cream tastes so good going down but ultimately leaves us feeling sick and lethargic. The addiction we turn to provides immediate relief but in the long run only hastens our downward spiral.
Every choice has a consequence. God is the only source of life and He longs for us to be made whole. He will not tolerate sharing us with any idol. He loves us too much for that. We all have idols in our lives that need to be kicked out. Only when God sits alone on the throne of our hearts will we discover the peace, joy, and rest of a truly fulfilled life. Stop turning to things other than God to bring you peace. He is the only way.