I struggle. Daily. Hourly. Ok, I admit it, I live in a constant struggle. Some of you have witnessed my life and you are thanking God for finally enlightening me to this fact that you have been well aware of for quite some time. Let me share my struggle-let’s see if you can relate.
I have a problem thinking God might not be enough. You see I would never verbalize it that way, but we all know that actions speak louder than words. To put it simply, I struggle with idolatry. I used to think idolatry was just worshipping something other than God. Now I realize that is exactly what it is but I am simply blind to the things I worship. I want to believe that God is enough for me, but I am confronted that if that was really true then some things in my life would have to change. My view of my leadership, my desire to be wanted and needed, my desire to be liked and admired, how I love my wife and girls, etc. All of those things don’t necessarily seem like idols, but the minute I live my life to satisfy those longings over living my life for the glory and magnification of God, I am playing with idolatry.
I see it all around us also. From the way people follow and obsess over their sports teams, to someone’s infatuation with education (yes, I believe we put that too high sometimes), to trading all the free time in their life over to playing a sport so they MIGHT get noticed and get a scholarship, to simply what you give up to get that new trinket (iPad, Droid, TV bigger than your kitchen table), it all seems to drip with idolatry. Do I think desiring things and having fun and being smart is wrong? Definitely not! But I want to get to the point that I want God more than those things because then I can really be truthful when I say God is enough.
Idolatry is huge and every person struggles with it. That isn’t a reason to dismiss it, it’s a reason to repent of it. I pray that myself and all of us would struggle with what John the Baptist says in John 3:30…less of me and more of You.
