"Do not turn to idols or make for yourselves molten gods; I am the Lord your God." - Leviticus 19:4
Pictured above is the statue of a false god lying in the bottom of the ocean near Pompeii. I wonder how many people bowed down and worshiped it, centuries ago. More importantly, how disappointed they must have been when their idolization of and prayers to it, went unanswered.
My favorite story about the dangers of following false gods/idols is found in 1 Kings 17:17-40. You owe it to yourself to read this brief but amazing, highly comedic true story about how God revealed Himself to the audience in a powerful way.
"Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. When all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, "The LORD, He is God; the LORD, He is God." - 1 Kings 17:38-39
An idol is defined as an object of extreme devotion, a representation or symbol as an object of worship, among other things according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. To show how off track the United States is from its original Judeo-Christian roots, one need only reference a popular reality show, "American Idol".
How very sad. Seriously.
From God's perspective, an idol is anything or anyone we turn to for ANY reason (including help, wisdom, comfort, etc.) rather than Him.
Which is why, towards the tail-end of my nightmarish years of suffering from 'alcohol use disorder'', a/k/a "alcoholism", I learned the TRUTH about my situation and how God eventually delivered me from it as a result.
What indeed started out so innocently on my end - following the advice of a friend to have a glass of wine at bedtime to help alleviate my years of chronic insomnia - quickly developed into an addiction (from the world's perspective). Up until that time, for most of my adult life into my mid-50s, I was a 'take it or leave it, normal' drinker. I was not - never have been - a 'weak-willed' person and this was anything but a moral failing.
When anyone drinks an addictive substance over a long period of time, a tolerance will ensue and, assuming they're drinking for the initial buzz, they will begin drinking more until the realize they're no longer in control. It can - and does - happen to anyone, no matter how strong, wise or "good" a person thinks they are. Alcohol doesn't discriminate. Believe me, you're not all that. You just aren't. None of us are! :)
For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith. - Romans 12:3
When my brain identified alcohol as the solution to my serious health issue that I'd had for 8.5 years, it quickly rewired itself through a science-based, proven physiological process called 'neuroplasticity'.
Only by reading The Heart of Addiction by Mark E. Shaw and working through its accompanying workbook with a Biblical counselor, were my spiritual eyes opened and I realized I had turned alcohol into an idol and had been committing the sin of idolatry. God, in His infinite mercy, gave me the gift of repentance and led me down a most interesting path to deliverance of my suffering, once and for all.
Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. - Galatians 5:19-21 [emphasis mine]
What is the answer? We need to crucify our flesh (our natural desires and tendencies) on a daily basis. We also need to transform and renew our minds from the inside out (the spiritual equivalent of neuroplasticity).
Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. - Galatians 5:24-25
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. - Romans 12:2
Here's a brief clip of a recent interview I was featured on called "That Christian in Recovery". The full version, once it becomes available, will be posted on my website under "Media":
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