Are You Worshiping the Idol of Your Creation?

By Patrick Hawthorne

14 Then some of the leaders of Israel visited me, and while they were sitting with me, ² this message came to me from the Lord: ³ “Son of man, these leaders have set up idols in their hearts. They have embraced things that will make them fall into sin.Why should I listen to their requests? ⁴ Tell them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: The people of Israel have set up idols in their hearts and fallen into sin, and then they go to a prophet asking for a message. So I, the Lord, will give them the kind of answer their great idolatry deserves. ⁵ I will do this to capture the minds and hearts of all my people who have turned from me to worship their detestable idols.’ (Ezekiel 14:1-5 NLT)

What is it that you think of when you hear the word, “Idol?”  Do you think of a graven image made of wood or stone…an image that can be held and manipulated to fit one’s current desire?  Or, do you think of an idol as anything that causes a person to divert their focus from the things of God to the object of their desire?

To carry this further, is it possible for a God given dream – a desire given to you by God for His good works – to become an idol? What if the worship of the dream supersedes the worship of the Giver of the dream?

Years ago, the Lord placed a dream in my heart.  I will not get into the nature of the dream, but I believe it was and still is from God.  The problem was that the dream began to consume my thoughts.  Instead of waiting on the Lord and just being a faithful servant, my desire for the fulfillment of the dream became my focus.  I was worshiping the dream, not the Giver of the dream.  To put it bluntly, the dream became my idol.  I was trying to manipulate God to fit my current desire.  Truth be told, I was no different than those leaders who had approached Ezekiel.  I had set up an idol in my heart in the form and shape of how I thought God should bring my dream to fulfillment.

I thank God that I was able to judge myself before severe correction had to take place.  I’m not certain if the Lord would have given me the kind of answer my idolatry deserved, but I honestly have no desire to find out.  I just thank God, through our Lord Jesus, for His abundant grace.

If you are chasing your dream from God, stop!  Rest in the Lord.  Prepare yourself as is necessary, but rest in the assurance that He will bring it about in His good timing.  Don’t let your dream become your idol.  Be blessed.