Idols??

My husband really likes this pastor, Mark Driscoll from Mars Hill in Seattle. The other day as we were driving up to the lake we were listening to this sermon on idolatry by him. I was shocked to find that it only kicked my butt hard. He talked about how there are so many things in our lives that become idols to us. Obvious things like money, material things, possessions; but one thing that really hit me was he was actually also referring to mothers and parenting. Although it is a good thing, this can become a "god" thing...meaning a not so good thing. That your child can become the "god" in your life. That being a mother and the praise over it can become that idol.

In the Bible it says that ANYTHING that you put first, before God is an idol. Yes, being a mother is an amazing, rewarding thing, but some of us don't realize how much we may be putting that before God. He talked about how many women get obsessed with the idea of having a child or carrying a child that they forget about Jesus being the one who should be first. It may sound harsh to some moms and dads, but family is not the thing that comes first in our lives, it should be God. I am not saying that I am perfect and have never put my daughter and my husband before God, I am saying that since the birth of our daughter I have had times where God was not first. Since my marriage to my husband, there were times where he was first before God. I am just being real and have realized that even though these are great things, these are not to become the center of our lives...GOD needs to be the center of our lives.

He also talked about how a lot of pastors and ministers become so obsessed with ministry that THAT becomes their idol. Yes, it is a good thing...its a GREAT thing to reach lives for the Gospel, but it can become a not-so-good thing when we put ministry, or the thought of ministry before Jesus. He said that "worship" can become an idol. Some people complain about how much they can't worship because they never sing a specific song or songs anymore like they used to in church. No matter what the song is or how it is sung, God should be lifted up and praised as the center of our worship. The idol there is music and songs. How can anyone possibly look bitterly at music that we give to God with the words it speaks and the prayers it prays? We are putting our own selfish desires before God. There is another idol.

So we ask ourselves, is there ANYTHING that is NOT an idol?? The only reason it becomes and idol is because we are putting it FIRST before God. All these things are good things, but there is a way to go about these good things.

The only reason why I decided to post this is because God convicted me in a deep way, and I felt the need to share the thoughts on this. I'm not here pointing fingers or anything, I am just sharing how I feel. We all have or will struggle in our lives on this subject because none of us are perfect until we get to heaven.

"So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world."
Colossians 3:5