Idols

Jonah 2:8 "Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.

It’s been quite some time since I last shared my thoughts (I low-key miss this!). In all honesty, it’s been difficult to find something I deem worthy to publish, but this one stuck with me, so I thought, why not share it with y’all? (Hopefully I can publish more often — pray for me!)

Surrender

I was reading a morning devotional from Jackie Hill Perry's book Upon Waking and came across an entry that caught my attention. The entry was about surrender, and the verse she chose to accompany it jumped out at me:

"...those who choose to cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs..."

I started to think — what about the idols that we don't realize are idols? What about the idols that we don't see?

Not Just a Golden Calf

It’s easy to think of an idol as a physical thing — a created object that people spend their time and energy honoring. But what if it goes beyond the typical “golden calf”? What if idolatry goes beyond what our pastors and preachers call out Sunday morning, like social media and money?

There are other areas in life where subconscious idols show up — moments where we allow our hearts to be aligned with things that aren’t worthy of our devotion.

Subconscious Devotion

Now I know "devotion" isn't a word you'd consider in this context, but think about it: When you're devoted to something, you're loyal to it, you're attached to it. It’s become a defining part of who you are, and when people try to address it, a defense mechanism pops up.

We have become so protective of our past experiences, past hurts, that we’ve elevated those experiences into idols. We cling to them, reverence them, base our identity and next move off of them.

And when God asks us to step away from the idol — to surrender it to Him for repair and healing — we cling to it even harder. We’ve become enmeshed, to the point where we don’t know where the past pain ends and where we begin.

You're not alone

Let me be the first to say: it can be very daunting putting something you once reverenced in its proper place. It isn't easy. But luckily, for those who are willing to do the work, you don't have to do it alone. There is help out there.

You are not your past experience. You are not your sin.Once we are able to separate those, we can start to heal.We can start to tend to the wounds.

Sometimes it may feel like there’s a void where that idol used to be.Give God the opportunity to take His rightful place in the areas you need healing.

Cast down your idol, seek freedom, and open yourself to receive the grace that’s available to you.