Idols of the Heart: What Takes God’s Place?

Choose This Day: What’s Really on the Throne of Your Heart?

In my last blog, (HERE) I shared a vision the Lord gave me of a storm on the horizon — a good storm for those who know Him, a hard one for those who don’t. In the middle of that word, one line kept repeating: “Choose this day whom you will serve.”

That phrase isn’t new. It comes straight from Joshua 24:15.

The Scripture

Joshua had gathered all of Israel together. He reminded them of everything God had done to bring them out of Egypt — and then he reminded them of the idols of their hearts and of the land, and what was taking God’s place:

“But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods of your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

What This Means for Us

I think there’s a real parallel here for where we are right now. We have basically been in our own Egypt. Our own Babylon. And if the Lord is about ready to let us out — to give us our freedom — we have to deal with something uncomfortable: there are things inside of us, that are not of God, and we may not even be aware of it.

We probably have idols of our hearts. I’m sure we have things we’ve put before God without even realizing we’re doing it. I know that I do, and that’s the hard part — it’s rarely the obvious stuff. It’s the things that have taken a seat on the throne without us noticing they are there.

What Can You Do?

So here’s what I’d suggest: don’t wait for something serious and tragic to happen before God has to show you where you have something in the way. Get before the Lord now and simply ask Him to show you. Ask Him to show you if there’s an idol of your heart you’ve put before Him that you’re not even aware of.

Maybe you already know exactly what it is. Either way — He’s asking us to clean out our hearts right now.

See The Whole Word Here

Why now? Because this coming season of rain is meant to purify. It’s going to be good for those of us who know Him. But if we’re holding on to idols, we might see them fall from a very high place — and that kind of fall can be painful. Maybe even psychologically.

Better to lay it down now than watch it get pulled down later.

Reflection Questions