Who’s #1?

Jeremiah 18:15 - But my people are not so reliable, for they have deserted me; they burn incense to worthless idols. They have stumbled off the ancient highways and walk in muddy paths.

We are doing a 6-week bible study on Jeremiah at church and this week’s lessons are over idols. Webster’s definition of an idol is a person or thing that is greatly admired, loved, or revered. I’ve known most of my Christian life that the idols that we must be wary of are things like television, phones, jobs, activities, etc. Anything that we put ahead of God. What I never thought about was that we can make our family our idol. If spending time with them, doing for them, providing for them, or making them happy becomes more important to us than spending time with God or serving Him, then that has become our idol. I can see and hear the, "Oh, I don’t think so,” head twirls and finger snaps coming already. I know this is a sensitive subject because we are responsible for loving and providing for our families. They should come first above everything, except God.

If we look at Jeremiah 18:15 we can replace, “they burn incense to worthless idols,” with, “they give all their time and money to their children or family." Have you ever skipped church to have an early lunch with your college kid, or go to a baseball game instead of bible study? Have you ever bought your kid a new outfit for a dance and not been able to tithe? Have you ever worked 10-12 hour shifts to pay for a new car for your teenager and been too tired to spend daily time with God? These are just a few, albeit painful, examples of how we can put our family ahead of God. On an occasion or two it isn’t really bad, but when we do it once it becomes easier the next time, until it’s a way of life. We all do it. We all make poor choices in prioritizing God.

Through this study, God has convicted me over the choices I have made since I’ve had my family. I was blessed with my family late in life. I was 38 when I met and married my husband. Over the years I had become so very protective over this little family of mine that anything that threatened the happiness we have was met with fierce resistance. Recently I’ve fought against some particular things God has been asking me to do. One of my biggest hinderances was the beautiful little family bubble we had built. I did not want anything to disrupt my bubble, so I ignored, resisted, and fought against this calling God had given me. I finally surrendered, but it wasn’t until I went through these lessons this week that I realized I have been putting my family before God.

Why does God demand that nothing come before Him? There are several reasons, but I believe one has to do with our biggest role as His children. That role is pointing others to Him. If we are not connected to Him on a daily basis, we cannot exhibit His attributes. His love, joy, peace, etc. Without those attributes, let's face it, we are not drawing anyone to Him. In our own human nature, it is impossible to point someone to Jesus. 2 Peter 3:9 says, “He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.” I believe that is one of the reasons why He puts so much emphasis on us not putting anyone or anything ahead of Him. Our connection with Him is what gives us His nature. His nature is what draws people to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. I think that is one reason why we must do a regular evaluation of our lives to ensure that nothing is taking God’s place. We must ask ourselves, “Who or what is my #1?”