An incomplete joy of our world

That one has built their life upon.

Love, Money, Power, Sex, Greed, Beauty-

Just a few notes that compose our world’s song.

Idols aren’t just golden statues,

And shrines weren’t just used in the past.

Gods still rule the earth today,

Demanding sacrifices for pleasures and "blessings" that will not last.

Aphrodite, Ares, Artemis, and Hephaetus.

Beauty, War, Wealth, and Craftsmanship.

Sacrifice to them and others of their kind-

Promises of happiness and fulfillment

You will not find.

Eventually your sky-high palace walls will tumble down,

To reveal the dungeon of disillusionment,

That has trapped you underground.

When the center of someone’s life

Has disappeared,

Been destroyed

Or is denied,

Disappointment and despair

Begin to grow and thrive.

A victim of Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme,

An executive from Sheldon Good, and Freddie Mac,

A Danish senior executive with HSBC Bank and

A Bear Stearns executive whose firm couldn’t fight back-

They all committed suicide in 2008

From an economic meltdown they couldn’t escape.

Money had defined their lives.

It had become their reason to exist,

Their life support,

Their Messiah.

Idols lie.

They claim they’ll bring us happiness, security, and peace.

They promise that they’ll satisfy our every want,

And give us what will please.

But God, the creator of our hearts,

Is the only one who can give us what we truly need.

He’s the only one who is faithful, and everlasting.

He’s the only one who will never leave.

Apart from Him,

In our hearts we’ll be jailed in sin,

Chained by our idols

To the walls within.

The gods that are rooted deep in our hearts

Cause our surface idols to suck more of our soul,

To feed these gods that control our every move,

And produce fruit of the flesh that will poison us whole.

Jacob from the bible idolized Rachel for sex

And his children for acceptance.

Jonah desired freedom of his nation,

And Naaman, like Madonna, trusted heavily on his success.

Leah wanted Jacob’s love

And Zacchaeus stole and hoarded money

Nebuchadnezzar held on tightly to his power

And Isaac gave his devotion to his son entirely.

Each one discovered that the reality of their hopes and dreams

Were based on items, people and ideas

That were never what they seemed.

Only when they began to trust in God,

And give their all and all to Him,

Did they learn to die to themselves,

And were finally able to live.

Jeremiah 17:7:

"Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,

Whose confidence is in Him."