Gods, gods, gods. What do you make to be a little god to you?
Did you know that there are people who worship: dogs, dirt, fish, the sun, the states, and donkeys? Just to name a few. Really! Check out forms of worship on this website I found: http://phrontistery.info/worship.html .
Let’s be real…some of us make money, our job, spouse, sports, children, cars, hobbies, art, Facebook, Twitter, etc. little gods. Anything that takes priority over the one true God or that dominates your life has become a little god to you.
Just today my cousin asked about why I left the previous school where I was teaching. I told her that it was honestly becoming a “little god”. It consumed so much of my time away from my family and church that it was just too much. It wasn’t worth it to me. The one thing that did stay consistent while I worked there was my time with God. I had to have my alone time with God first thing each morning to get me through each day. Whew! I can breathe better now and my family and church time is back in my life. When I look back, I can see why I was there. God had me there for a purpose, and then He brought me to a more peaceful place in life.
We read several times in the bible about worshipping other gods and the consequences that come with it. Today in Psalms 86:8 it says, “Among the gods there is none like you, Lord;” The psalmist recognized that others do worship or idolize something as a god, but that there is nothing that compares to God.
Psalm 40:5, “You have done many miraculous things, O LORD my God. You have made many wonderful plans for us. No one compares to you!”
Psalms 86:10, “For you are great and do marvelous deeds;
you alone are God.”
Also in today’s “Walk in the Word” we read about when a silversmith named Demetrius made great fortune making silver shrines of the god Artemis. He felt that his occupation was in danger due to the spread of “The Way” (Jesus). His desire to make money off of this god thing overpowered him and caused a riot in Ephesus. Demetrius quoted Paul as saying in Acts 19:26b, “He says that gods made by human hands are no gods at all.” Amen! He wanted to deny that statement, but it is true.
Even Satan knew that there was one true God, so when tempting Christ he used that strong truth to try to persuade Jesus another direction. He told Christ that if He would worship Satan the world could be His (Christ’s). But Jesus knew better. In Luke 4:8 it says, “And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.” If God thought it so significant to include that story in the bible, then we ought to learn from it and make sure we do the same. “Get back, Satan! I worship God and God alone!”
So think about what consumes your life. Is it a little god? Does it take priority over your relationship with God? Change it. Free yourself. Feel the peace that you will have when you keep God first in our life. Keep Him first and He will give you the desires of your heart. You just may find that He is your desire.
Blessings to you!
July 22, “Walk in the Word”