The Bible says not to worship idols. Of course, in some places today and noted a lot in the past, people made statues of gold or something really important and worshiped them. That is about the same thing as me going out to a tree and bowing down to it and thanking it for everything it does for me. In my mind, that is absolutely silly. For non-believers, of course the question would be, "what's the difference between worshiping a tree and worshiping a God you can't see?" Well, my answer would be that a tree can't fix anything for you. It is not going to love you and want the best for you. It has no power over anything!
God has shown up in my life many times. I say shown up even though he has always been there because it's when I noticed him.Two or three times now, we were so strapped financially that we couldn't find a way to buy food for our kids. Within days, a random unexpected check would come in the mail. Just about the amount for groceries. Also, I have suffered from depression for over 20 years. I was a kid, I know at least in junior high. I have been hospitalized for suicidal thoughts. I had prayed to die many times. I had taken so many medications with no effect that I still get confused as to what I have tried or not tried. A couple of months ago, I again was at the bottom, but this time we are involved with a church. I asked our pastors to pray for me and I have not had depression since! That may not seem like much, but for someone who has been desperately seeking relief for a LONG time, that is huge to me! You can't say it's just in my head when it has lasted as long as it has! It just doesn't work that way. So why worship something that doesn't have thoughts or cares?
So what are some of today's idols?
I would say money is the biggest idol these days. Money is not a sin. Loving money is what the sin is. When everything you do is based on how much money you can get. You go to school to earn a degree to have a good job that will support you and your family. Where school comes in as a sin is when you choose to go to school to get a job that makes a lot of money. A lot of people don't go because it is a stable, reliable job or that they love the field. What will a million dollars do for you? It will buy you stuff that you never needed in the first place and will only lead you to wanting more. What about when you die? What happens to all that stuff? Big, expensive, fancy cars are going to be taken back because your less fortunate family can't afford them. What about when you run out of money? You don't need all that stuff. You can't take it to heaven with you. Instead of focusing on what the world sees that you have and spending all your time blowing money to impress others, focus on the bigger picture. God is real! Heaven is real! If you don't believe that, what's the harm in learning about God and Christ? I would rather be covered on earth than to die and face God and say, "Oh, you really are real." I would rather spend eternity with God than see him when I die and go to hell. Even if you don't know God or have never loved him or known him, he knows you and loves you and always will. He has put things, people, situations in your life so you can find him. Now you have to fulfill the purpose he put you on earth for.
