Last night, I taught a Bible study on the Book of Joshua, chapter 24. A chunk of Joshua 24 is about the Israelites recommitting themselves/ renewing their covenant to follow God. Towards the end of the chapter, right after the people have agreed to the covenant, Joshua exhorts the people to:
23 “Now then,” said Joshua, “throw away the foreign gods that are among you and yield your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.” (NIV)
This got me thinking about the “foreign gods” that I allow into my own life. One of my daily routines, when I wake up, is to check:
- My email
- WordPress (for blog stats)
- and the weather
I do all of these things before ever engaging in a conversation with my wife, let alone spending time with God. In a way, I have let social media become a god. So, today I didn’t go through my morning routine. Instead, I read my Bible for a bit (had trouble focusing) and then prayed for awhile. My time of prayer was awesome! I’ve been learning not to beat around the bush but to tell God exactly what I am thinking (even though He already knows). In an act as simple as putting down social media as the first thing I engage in, in the morning, I have “yielded my heart to the Lord”.
What foreign gods do you need to throw away? What is keeping you from yielding your heart to the Lord?
JohnnyBGamer 