Which master will you serve?

"No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money." Matthew 6:24

Throughout history man has chosen to either serve God or serve their own manmade gods. In this passage Jesus warns us of letting money be our master. But there are multiple other gods that take up residence in our hearts. Money, power, self, acceptance, spouse, children, work, our past, our future.... The list goes on and on. Many of our gods are subtle. They begin as a good passion but soon they have taken over our thoughts and our hearts. They become our focus. Anything that occupies our mind and our heart and screams for attention, is a god. Earthly gods call loudly and are demanding. They are desires within us that need to be attended to and they often don't subside until we do something about them.  Worriers meet the desire to fix the situation by saying and doing things to control the situation. Addicts crave the next fix. Money hungers work too much or spend to readily on selfish purchases. But Jesus is a quiet God who puts no demands on us. He just wants to build a relationship with us.

Jesus knows and understands the pull of these gods on our hearts. That's why he tells us to pick up our cross and follow him. In picking up our cross we choose Jesus and nail our own desires to the cross as a sacrifice in exchange to do his will. When we long for things, situations, or people that we don't have, we miss out on what's right before our eyes; We miss blessings from God. Our little gods always disappoint us. They cost us everything. And they leave us empty and wanting.

What cries out for your attention today? Joshua puts it this way, "Choose for yourself this day whom you will serve... But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." Joshua 24:14

Whatever occupies your mind, holds your heart. Choose wisely today.

Dear LORD,
Make me aware of the gods in my life. Help me to retrain my mind to think of you and of you alone. Allow me to be content in what and who you have placed in my life. Let my devotion be to you alone. In your holy name I ask these things. Amen