got idols?

Josiah removed all the detestable idols from all the territory belonging to the Israelites, and he had all who were present in Israel serve the Lord their God. As long as he lived, they did not fail to follow the Lord, the God of their ancestors.  2 Chronicles 34:32-33 

Does that sound like an ancient concept that has no bearing on your weekend? Or can you personalize it and fill in some modern-day idols that take center stage in your life? 

There was a specific period of time when I demolished a number of "arguments and every pretension that set itself up against the knowledge of God" as 2 Corinthians 10:5 describes.

An idol has been defined as anything that occupies the forefront of your mind. It probably won't be a bronze calf, we're more sophisticated than that. What does your life revolves around though? 

Being created to worship means that we are all susceptible to idolatry. Would-be gods are perpetually sneaking up on the altar of our hearts. They need to be removed and replaced with the One true God if we want what's best for ourselves. The very first commandment is that we have no other gods before Him.

I see it best when Reid walks around with a new VHS tape. He fixates on its front, back, spine, memorizes the back matter, copyright date, and fine print. Watches YouTube videos like this one by a similar collector. It becomes his world and precludes all else. His eyes are 2" from the image. His ears replay the soundtrack. His mind reviews each scene. His fingers cling to the black plastic casing. It is all he can think about. He begs me to go to a thrift store and buy another.

At first it's easy to dismiss or criticize as just bizarre, but then I begin to see what I am holding onto just as tightly. Go ahead, personalize it...

Andrea removed all the detestable idols from her territory--food, wine, dessert, being in charge, pleasing people, safety, comfort, her reputation, her children, her iPhone, autism itself--so all who were present served the Lord their God. 

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:17-18

Let us run the race marked out for us fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. Hebrews 12:1-3