Unlike Abraham, God will not have us physically place our children on the altar of sacrifice. Yet in a similar way, he does require us to place all things of importance on the altar of our hearts. He does that because nothing can take first place in our lives over him. First place must be reserved for God alone.
What thing does God require you to sacrifice?
A few years ago, it became obvious to me that I valued Star Trek very highly. While noticing this truth, I began toying with the idea of getting rid of everything Star Trek in my life- cold turkey. That meant watching the current TV iteration (Voyager) would have to stop. At first, I thought it would be no problem, but as the day progressed (and time for the newest episode to air approached), it got harder and harder to convince myself I needed to make this "sacrifice." As the countdown neared zero, I sat in my kitchen (a mere 10 feet from the TV) agonizing over whether I could do this or not; whether I should do this or not. I tried to convince myself that this sacrifice was not necessary; my heart beat faster; the clock ticked louder. And it was then, in that struggle, I realized how important Star Trek had become to me. If it was so hard to leave behind, it had to have a serious hold on me- and that really bothered me!
Finally 9:00 PM came and went and great relief flooded my body. From that point on, I had no trouble leaving Star Trek completely behind.
Like the proverbial frog in the kettle, these things sneak up on us without our even noticing them. I'm sure that some of you think it incredible that a mere TV show could have such a hold on my life. But plug in some other thing from your own life and the story takes on new meaning. What is it that has a crushing hold on your life? What takes precidence- maybe even over God? That morning cup of coffee? That exercise regimen? That car? That person? Am I meddling now?
Months after leaving Star Trek behind, God spoke to me one day and "gave it back to me." I hesitated, but he assured me it would be okay from here on out and I have since discovered he was right. I enjoy Star Trek (and praise God for it, although Battlestar Galactica has overtaken Star Trek- "Enterprise" was so lame!), but it no longer has a strangle-hold on my life. God is first and there's no doubt about it.
Abraham too, placed his most valued thing on the altar and was prepared to give it up forever. God did not really require it of him either- but in the process, Abraham and I realized the same truth: God must have first place in our lives.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment