Their leader was gone and the people were without vision. They didn't have purpose. They didn't know who they were in the Lord. I don't think they even believed the Lord to be their deliverer. They even said, "That Moses, the man who got us out of Egypt". I believe that people need a leader. I believe people need a cause. They need identity. They need purpose. Without it they are lost and searching for something special and important to do or be apart of.
When we don't have these things it is so easy to pick up or create idols in our lives. Idolatry is an act of worship that begins in your heart and probably starts out slow and innocent. I know I have dealt with a great big fat idol in my heart! Healthy eating! It's not like I woke up one day {or ever} and thought, "I am going to worship healthy eating!" It happened slowly. Before I knew it our healthy lifestyle was the driving force of many relationships, how I spent my time, and how we spent our money.
Eating healthy is good and we should all make responsible choices to honor the Lord with our bodies and our finances. That's right finances. There are 2,350 verses in the Bible about money. I'm not really writing about money today. However, when we talk about idols how we spend our money says a lot about the things we meditate on in our hearts.
Healthy eating was a place holder for my real purpose. My real purpose is loving Jesus and loving my neighbor. So now, I am getting more involved at church, going on a mission trip to Cambodia, and actively praying and seeking out other ways to give my time and resources. The Lord blesses us so we can be a blessing to others. We can't bless anyone if we are stretched financially thin and completely out of hours in our day because our focus is inward.
We all need to find a God fueled passion and pursue it! We all need leaders to help guide and direct us. Find a church to get involved in. Get a mentor to help you walk through life and grow in the purpose the Lord placed inside you. We all have something inside of us that longs to fulfill some great purpose, the Lord placed that in us. He wants us to be His hands and feet. He uses us to go all over the world and share His love!! We need to change our thinking to an eternal perspective. Life and death hang in the balance and as believers we have the power to impact people's lives for eternity! We should be growing heaven and shrinking hell, quite frankly, if we aren't doing this then we are failing as Christians.
The golden calf was not only a place holder for God it was also a distraction. It distracted the Hebrew people from fulfilling their purpose and taking their place as victorious children of God dwelling in their promised land.
Are the choices you are making building a golden calf or growing the Kingdom of Heaven? We need to check our hearts and our outward lives.
"If you decide for God, living a life of God-worship, it follows that you don't fuss about what's on the table at mealtimes...There is far more to your life than the food you put in your stomach..." Matthew 6:25-26 (MSG)
Blessings,
~Hailey
