American Idols?

It's an odd thing. Never would I have linked together the date our nation was formed with the date when God confronted Israel with her idolatry. (Gold calf) But there it is - and it's a bit haunting. I'm still taking this to Him - What does it all mean?

As I dug more into the issue of idols, He stunned me with this: Idolatry is at the root of every sin. "The Bible does not consider idolatry to be a sin among many. Rather, the only alternative to true, full faith in the living God is idolatry. All our failures to trust God wholly or to live rightly are due at root to idolatry— something we make more important than God." (Tim Keller)

Yikes! Seems I have some work to do. Time to let Him expose where idols of comfort, control, approval, financial security, etc., are hidden and harbored in the nooks and crannies, cracks and crevices of my heart.

Always have to look at our issues before we look to see what's happening in others and in the nation. But then, this 'lens' helps us see and understand what's going on nationally. Dependence upon anything but God for identity, happiness, and purpose, will establish idols of ideology, control, culture and power. And all these demand worship, service and blood sacrifice.

It is unwise to quickly dismiss what God brings front and center. Let's begin to pull any logs from our eyes and idols from our hearts. Then we will see clearly that we pray rightly, declare fully, and cry out heartily for mercy. He is the one who gave us the gift of this remarkable and broken nation. And He ain't done with it yet. Stephen Replay of this Deck teaching on YouTube. Full replay of the entire Flight Deck on Facebook.