MAY 12

Deuteronomy 5:1-10
Memorise Deuteronomy 5:9
"...Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve."

What image does the word "idol" conjure in your head? Perhaps you would imagine a bronze-coloured figurine of a round-bellied man, sitting cross-legged and laughing heartily. Or perhaps you might remember the golden calf from Sunday School stories, of the idol that the Israelites worshipped at the foot of Mt Sinai.

Interestingly enough, if you do a Google image search of the word "idol", what comes up is rather different. Images of various pop stars, movie stars, celebrities etc fill the screen; in particular, hundreds of images relate to the popular reality show "American Idol". What does this tell you? Simply this - that idols are not limited to those little bronze or wooden figurines that you find in temples and that superstitious people bow down to. As today's passage tells us, an idol is basically anything that you serve, worship or adore in place of God. That is why, in the Second commandment, we are commanded not only to not bow down to false gods, but also to not serve any other god besides the LORD our God.

Dear teen, do you find yourself serving something or someone else more than you serve God? That thing or pseron has become the other god in your life that has robbed God of His rightful #1 place in your life. And remember, our God is a jealous God. We are His creation; therefore He has an intense hatred for anything that replaces Him in our hearts. Idolatry is hence something that displeases God greatly.

Is there a movie star or singer than you idolize? Are you spending so much time on studies or other activities that you neglect God? Do you have a hobby that consumes your every waking thought? Dear teen, may you thus set aside any of these other gods which you may be serving in your life right now, and commit your life fully to serving God alone.

Thought: Am I serving another god?
Prayer: Lord, rid my life of all idols and help me to serve Thee only.