RTW 2022

Then the LORD said to me, “Son of man, look toward the north.” So I looked, and there to the north, beside the entrance to the gate near the altar, stood the idol that had made the LORD so jealous.
Ezekiel 8:5

Webster, is “the worship of idols or excessive devotion to, or reverence for some person or thing.” An idol is anything that replaces the one, true God. idolatry is a matter of the heart—pride, self-centeredness, greed, gluttony, a love for possessions and ultimately rebellion against God.

He is the God who sees, El Roi. God sees the distraught, downtrodden, devoted, and those who delight in Him, but He also sees the deceitful, disobedient, disloyal, and dissatisfied.

Idols are

• Seen by God (Ezekiel 8:3,12) Even in the dark rooms
• Stir jealous in God (Ezekiel 8:5)
• Solicit action by God (Ezekiel 8:18)

God’s seemingly inactivity is not an excuse for me to craft idols and turn from him to live life my own way until I can feel Him again. Feels aren’t real and they lie.

• God is never not working.
  But Jesus replied, “My Father is always working, and so am I.”
  John 5:15
• God is always with us.
  Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”
  Hebrews 13:5-6 (ESV)

As with any kind of worship, the object of adoration inevitably controls us.

What or who is controlling me?

• Work
• Family
• Community
• Church
• Relationships
• Travel
• Exercise
• Success
• Career

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He brought me to the north gate of the LORD’s Temple, and some women were sitting there, weeping for the god Tammuz. “Have you seen this?” he asked. “But I will show you even more detestable sins than these!”Ezekiel 8:14This shocked me, at first, but then I had to ask, “Lord, is this happening in churches today?” Blatant pagan worship?I’m still waiting on the answer.

Sit with Holy Spirit and dare to ask… What is controlling me?