Friday March 17th

His love and faithfulness!

Do you ever ask yourself, why am I doing this?  Is it pleasing to the Lord or is it for my own gain? We can be so blindsided sometimes and think we are doing things for the Lord when really it is for our own benefit. It is so easy to get caught up in worldly ways.  We become what we worship.

Idols are a serious matter with the Lord.  Whether they are manmade images or something that takes His place in our lives He abhors them!

God warned the people when they were leaving Egypt- You shall not do what is done in the land of Egypt where you lived, nor are you to do what is done in the land of Canaan where I am bringing you; you shall not walk in their statutes. Leviticus 18:3  

Moreover, you shall not follow the customs of the nation which I will drive out before you, for they did all these things, and therefore I have abhorred them. Leviticus 20:23

Jeremiah 10:2- Hear the word which the LORD speaks to you, O house of Israel. ² Thus says the LORD, “Do not learn the way of the nations, Jeremiah 10:1-2

The first mention of idols was with Rachel when she stole her father’s household idols.  Household idols were to bring a blessing on the house.  Why did Rachel take her father’s household idols?  We really do not know why. 

I wonder do we have idols in our lives taken from our parents? As I was writing this I remembered that in my parents cars there were St Christopher medals for protection while we traveled.  I wonder if I thought I was safe back then because of the medals.  I know that many families have idols in their lives like my neighbor.  For the longest time our neighbor right across the street from us had a buddha statue in her window.  It bothered me so much to see it there…I asked the Lord to remove it and He did.  She now has a beautiful flowering plant there.  Someday I pray that they will know the One true God and find salvation in Jesus.

Scripture is very clear that the Lord is the One true God.  He is the living God and the everlasting King.  It is He who made the earth by His power and who established the world by His wisdom.  A man’s way is not in himself nor is it in a man who walks to direct his steps.  Jer. 10:10+12

⁷ ‘You shall have no other gods before Me.

⁸ ‘You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. ⁹ You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, and on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, ¹⁰ but showing loving kindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments. Deuteronomy 5:6-10

Is there anything in our lives which takes the place of God? 

Do we cherish things that we are not willing to part with and takes our heart away from God?

Do we put more time, value and effort in something other than God?

Are we holding on to the ways of the world?

Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation.

² Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving,

Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.

³ For the LORD is a great God

And a great King above all gods, Psalms 95:1-3

Father we come before You asking You to show us if there is an idol in our life that takes Your place.  We want our hearts to be totally Yours.  You are the One true God and we need not look to another.  Not to us Lord, not to us but to Your name we give the glory, because of Your steadfast love and Your truths.  You are our help and our shield. We trust in You alone!  We  We praise Your name!  Amen

Lyn