Replacement Theology...

For the more theologically minded; don't worry, I'm not hitting up that topic right now. What I am talking about is a replacement of affections. To live a Christian life is to be constantly swapping false affections for right affections, or rather to be replacing false idols in our lives with the only One truly worthy of worship- God. Idols come in many forms. Self image, relationships, jobs, friends, ministry, spouses, children, sex, comfort, entertainment, money, and food can all become idols to us, and often do. Many of these can be good things, but every single one of them can be mercilessly ripped from us at a moment's notice. None of these things are stable, none of them are permanent, and none of them can be completely and fully trusted. In the end, outside of the context of God and His love, they are all worthless and even worse, destructive. That is because only God is without fault, and only God is worthy of all of our faith and trust. Repeatedly we elevate life's good things and make them the most important things, and expect them to fulfill us in a way they were never ever meant to. And like Indiana Jones we repeatedly swap what is valuable for bags of sand. That is not to say that we shouldn't love our spouses with all our might, or that we shouldn't work hard at our jobs, or even that we shouldn't try and make a good living. But what happens when the spouse dies, we get laid off, and the stock market crashes? If our existence is wrapped up in these things, we're in for a world of hurt. The center of our lives should be God; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. When He is sitting on the throne of our hearts, then we are free to enjoy His blessings in a way that is healthy and satisfying, because instead of replacing Him, life's pleasures lead us to Him, and He is the very source of all that is good.