In preparation for a retreat I lead this past month I read two books Breaking the Idols of Your Heart and Idols of the Heart by Elyse Fitzpatrick. Both of these books have been a real treat for me and I recommend both of them to anyone interested in the subject.
The book begins by helping the reader to see that reality of the idols we all worship.
Idols aren’t just stone statues. No, idols are the thoughts, desires, longings, and expectations that we worship in the place of God. Idols cause us to ignore the true God in search of what we think we need.
She then takes the next several chapters to work out the importance of knowing who God is. Her argument is that unless we know God as he has been revealed to us in his word our natural reaction is to look to false gods. In other words, unless I am reminding myself that God is good by going back to his word my heart is going to believe the lie that God is not good. My believing that lie is what leads me to worship something else. This is why it is so important for us to have an accurate view of who God is. We must come to the point where we choose him because we know that he is the one who can save us.
Chapters 10 and 11 address the task of resisting and crushing our idols. Chapter 10 gives a helpful exercise one can use to help identifying where our idolatrous tendencies lie. (I have made a photocopy of that page and taped it to my prayer notebook so I can start doing the exercises as part of my prayer life.)
As you seek to put off idolatrous worship, replacing it with obedience, you’ll need to put on a heart that appreciates, loves, rejoices in, and celebrates the beauty, kindness, holiness, and majesty of your King. All other gods and their faint promises will pale when compared with the greatness and glory of the Lord.
My chief complaint is with the marketing of this book. It is marketed as a women’s devotional. I almost didn’t buy this book because I wasn’t sure it would help me in preparing for the retreat. I am so glad that I did. This is not just for women. This book is for any Christian who ever struggles with their allegiance to Christ. Do yourself a favor and read this book.
