The metalworker encourages the goldsmith,
and the one who smooths with the hammer
spurs on the one who strikes the anvil.
One says of the welding, “It is good.”
The other nails down the idol so it will not topple. – Isaiah 41:7 (NIV)
I used to wonder how the people of Israel could worship idols. I always thought it was so crazy that they could trust in something they made with their own hands rather than trust in a god whom they couldn’t see. However, as I’ve given it more thought, I’ve realized that many of us do similar things today.
No, none of us make a big idol out of gold. But there are areas of our lives that we build in our own strength. Maybe we build up an idol of success. So we study hard at school, try to get into a good college, and then hope that all of our effort will bring us success in our adult lives. Now, there’s nothing wrong with hard work. working hard is a godly character trait.
Today’s Truth: Don’t let anything stand in the way of your relationship with God.
However, when we trust in our hard work alone, and not in God, in a sense we are making our own efforts an idol in our lives. We can make many things in our lives idols if they crowd out our trust in God or our time with God.
We were created for worship and for knowing God. Anything that stands in the way of that is an idol. God should be first and foremost our measure of success. So determine today that you are not going to let anything get in the way of your relationship with God. When you have God, you have everything that you need.