Breaking Free From Idols

Would you rather listen than read? Listen here.

Seeking God

Back in 1990 something, in the time of big hair, I was a teen seeking to find truth in what I knew. I spent many hours seeking the God I had learned about in the few times we went to church and questioning what was in the spiritual world around me. On one day of chatting about such things with a friend, she mentioned we should use a Ouija board and see what we could find out about the ‘beyond.’

Oddly enough, we had one in our game closet. Running down the stairs, I grabbed it and quickly returned. We opened the dusty decades old box and pulled out the large board and placed our fingertips on the plastic arrow that would spell things out for us.

We began asking questions, and the arrow moved and began answering. With a little excitement at the discoveries and a little fear of what was happening, things in my room began to fall. Yes, things that were securely in place fell to the floor. True to teenage girl nature, we screamed and ran from my room.

Inviting Things In That Are Not Of God

In my naivety about the spiritual world, I did not know what I was doing. I was inviting things that were not of God into my bedroom. The feeling in my room never felt the same, and other unexplainable things happened from that point on.

When we are unaware of what the Scriptures say, we can easily open the doors to things that are not of God. Many people allow horoscopes, tarot readings, and psychics to tell us things instead of turning to the One who knows our hearts inside and out.

False Idols

We often allow things of this nature to become idols in our lives. In the same way, we idolize social media, our children’s achievements, TV, and the list goes on. An idol is anything that we put before God. None of us wants to think we have idols, but we all do.

Getting rid of idols is one of the most common themes throughout the Bible. In the book of Genesis, in chapter 35, we read of God telling Jacob to get rid of all the idols and to return to Bethel the place God had appeared to him. Why would he need to get rid of the idols first? Because they distract us from the truth. They distract us from seeing and hearing what God wants to reveal to us.

In the same way, when I was young and seeking to know more, I turned to what my friend suggested because it was available. If the Ouija board had not been in the house, maybe our conversation would have turned to different things.

They Saw Jacob’s God

Here is the best part of Jacob’s story. When they removed the idols, the surrounding people saw their God was with them. Did you get that? When nothing distracted them and their eyes were on God, the surrounding people saw their God was with them. It even says the people were terrified because they knew their God was with them.

“So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes. Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone.” So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods they had and the rings in their ears, and Jacob buried them under the oak at Shechem. Then they set out, and the terror of God fell on the towns all around them so that no one pursued them.

Genesis 35:2-5 NIV

Removing The Idols

What would it look like if we, like Jacob, got rid of the idols? If we removed all distractions and kept our eyes completely fixed on God, would others see Jesus in us? If others saw us turning to Jesus and our lives transformed, do you think they might meet Jesus too? When we get hurt by others and we turn to Jesus and are able to forgive, do you think that might reveal Jesus to others? When we are struggling with the things of life and we turn to Jesus and He guides our path, do you think others might see Jesus in that? I do.

I am not saying to walk in arrogance like Jesus said the Pharisees did, but to have a genuine relationship with God. When we spend time with God seeking His will for our lives, we will be like Moses and reflect His glory to others. (Read more on that here)

The Word

If we call ourselves Christians, we have to know the Word of God. We must know what it says and what it warns us against. I wish I would have known that before I began experimenting as a teen. I wish I had followed my heart and read His Word and not listened to my friend. Wishing won’t change anything, but I can look forward to the future and remove the idols from my life and not engage in the things of this world but in the things of God.

Breaking Free From Idols

I know this is hard. Really hard. One thing you can do is put a timer on your phone for every 15 minutes. When it goes off, write what you are doing. This can get annoying, but it’s quite revealing. At the end of your day, you will see what filled your time. Ask yourself, was this life-giving and did it draw me closer to Jesus, or did it completely distract me and pull me away? You can also pray over your day and ask the Lord what He would have you change so you can draw closer to Him.

It’s essential to reflect on these truths to diligently guard our hearts and minds against the influences that distract us from a genuine relationship with God. Our experiences, much like the one from my teens, serve as powerful reminders of the subtle ways distractions can enter our lives.

As we strive to remove these idols and focus solely on God, let’s embrace the transformative power of His presence. By doing so, not only do we live a life that truly honors Him, but we also become beacons of His love and truth in a world desperately seeking direction.

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