What is an example of Modern Day Idolatry? Well, to put it simply it is that attention to self. In the Bible we see others bowing down to man-made images and we quickly convince ourselves that we don't do such things, but we forget about how obsessed we are with ourselves and the amount of possessions that we have.
Don't believe that we have fallen asleep and have been overcome by idolatry? Look in your closets, attics, garages...they are filled with the "I got to have it" items of yesterday, yet we are still plotting and planning how we will obtain that latest gadget or newest item in the marketplace.
We worship at the altar of our own pride and ego. This often takes the form of obsession with careers and jobs. Most of us spend 60-80 hours a week working...even on the weekends and during vacations. Our laptops, iPad and smartphones never stop and our minds are in full motion with thoughts of how to make our life more successful, how to get that promotion, how to get the next raise and how to close the next deal. In the meantime, our children are starving for attention and love. We fool ourselves into thinking we are doing it for them, to give them a better life. But the truth is we are doing it for ourselves, to increase our self-esteem by appearing more successful in the eyes of the world.
This is folly. All our labors and accomplishments will be of no use to us after we die, nor will the admiration of the world, because these things have no eternal value.
As King Solomon put it, "For a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then he must leave all he owns to someone who has not worked for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune. What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is meaningless" (Ecclesiastes 2:21-23).
I shared all of this to SHOUT that starting this Friday, I'm on vacation! I will totally unplug...leaving behind the iPad, Laptop and BlackBerry! My wife doesn't think that I can do it, but after reading and listening to the above passage of Scripture, not only can I do it, I must do it. God has given me too much love (wife, children and His creation), to let it all pass me by. Time to pay attention to what truly matters.
Have a great Monday!
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