Are you an Idle Worshiper

Thursday, March 27, 2008

No, the Title is not a typo. For those of you who regularly read my devotions I know this comes as a surprise, but I do mean idle not idol. We'll talk about the difference in a few moments. First, let us take a look at a few verses that deal with idleness.


Proverbs 31:27
(Speaking of a godly wife) She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.

Ecclesiastes 10:18
If a man is lazy, the rafters sag; if his hands are idle, the house leaks.

Isaiah 58:13-14
13 "If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath
and from doing as you please on my holy day,
if you call the Sabbath a delight
and the LORD's holy day honorable,
and if you honor it by not going your own way
and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,
14 then you will find your joy in the LORD...

1 Thessalonians 5:14
And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone.

2 Thessalonians 3:7
For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you,

1 Timothy 5:13
Besides, they get into the habit of being idle and going about from house to house. And not only do they become idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying things they ought not to.

Let us first explore the threat of idleness, for often idleness leads to idolatry. Idleness is looking for a reason not to do rather than looking for ways to be useful. Some synonyms for the word idle are: indolent, lackadaisical, slothful, sluggish, abortive, empty, frivolous, fruitless, futile, groundless, hollow, insignificant, irrelevant, not serious, nugatory, otiose, and pointless.
When you break idleness down and look at it in all of it's forms, it is easy to see why idleness is not something that a Christian needs to fall into. This is not to say that after a long day of work you can't fall into your recliner for a short rest, but one should not always allow their free time to become idle time.

Think of things this way, everyday millions of Americans come home from work and watch 4 to 6 hours of television before going to bed. They wake up, go to work, and watch television again. America has become preoccupied with idleness. Television in and of itself is not a bad thing, but when it is abused it makes us complacent and leaves us with nothing but empty and wasted time. Television is not the only example of this type of idleness. There are video games, reading, fishing, anything that you engage in that is normally for leisure that does not yield fruit can be abused and become a tool of idleness.

When you stop to think about it, these same activities that we engage in to remain idle have become our idols. What was an idol? In the Old Testament an idol was typically referred to when talking about a man made image that was worshipped. A closer look though will tell you that an idol is anything that takes the place of God. Anything that you allow to consume your time, take you effort, or keep you from placing your effort in the correct direction can be an idol.

Most people today are not often confronted with the idols of the past. We may see images from other religions, but more often than not are not pressured to praise or worship these idols. The idols that we are confronted with are our favorite sports, hobbies, and activities.

When we place staying at home to watch the big game over going to church service we make that sport or game into a kind of an idol. We have placed something that is God's, our worship time, into something that is not God, a game. We have made this idol our priority. When you wake up and see a beautiful Sunday morning and grab your golf clubs instead of your bible, you commit idolatry. When I have the opportunity to serve God, but choose instead to hang out with my buddies and play video games, again I have denied God his due in order to fulfill my desires or devote myself to something else, this is the essence of idolatry.

Please do not get me wrong, God intends for us to take time for ourselves and do things that please us. However, when we become obsessed with committing all of our free time to these activities we give those activities power of our lives. We fail to look around us and ask what is it God wants me to do because our focus becomes narrow and intent on the activity we are obsessed with. We should enjoy the blessings God gives us, but we should never forget that these activities are gifts from God and we should be obedient to do God's work, and only then enjoy his bounty.

Prayer: Lord, help me keep my focus on you and not on the things of this world. God there is nothing more important in this world than You. You are the Alpha and the Omega, the wonderful one, you are the source of all good things. We pray that you would use us to work for your kingdom and that you would give us glad hearts in completing your tasks. Be with us and protect us from the distractions of the world and from desire to be sedentary. May all we do bring honor unto your name. In Jesus Name we pray, Amen.