Those Dumb Idol Worshipers...

Sometimes when I read the Old Testament, I think to myself: Those Israelites are so dumb. Every time they are doing well and are under the Lord's blessing, they go and ruin it for themselves by turning to false gods. Then things go badly for them, they get enslaved by a group of their enemies, they turn back to God, and He forgives them and sets them free again. Then a few years later, they do the exact same thing all over again. This happens dozens of times. I can't figure out why they don't seem to remember what happened the last time they turned to idolatry. Dumb.

Often God will give little insights into your own life through the lives of the people in the Bible. This little one comes like a smack in the face. [This is the original meaning of "Godsmack."] When God became angry because the people were worshiping false gods, I thank the Lord that I am not even tempted to worship Muhammad or Buddha. But I never stop to think about the gods called television, success, music, money, or Facebook. In God's eyes, do you think it makes a difference if we are worshiping the statue of the fat guy made out of metal or the flat screen on our living room wall? What is the one thing you love the most? If it isn't God by a landslide, there's probably an idol problem somewhere. Where are your thoughts during the day? If you've got free time, where does it end up going? 

I realize that I struggle with idolatry a lot more than I thought. I'm not saying that in order to live a godly life, we have to love God's blessings less. We should focus instead on loving God more.