1 John 5:18-21

I remember going to India and meeting a woman who had recently become a Christian. She invited us into her home and showed us all her idols, small statuettes of Hindu gods alongside an image of Jesus. I was shocked. My missionary friend asked her if she was planning to get rid of her old gods now but she said that she was not going to risk it. She wanted to add Jesus to the shelf but not remove the others.

This might seem strange to us as I am yet to meet someone in the UK who has a shelf of idols in their home. However, many of us act the same way. We want to add Jesus to our shelf and not remove the others things that are already on it. We hold onto things in our lives and turn them into objects of the highest value. They become the lines in the sand that we are afraid to lose or upset. A bit like the rich young man who was asked to become one of Jesus’ followers but could not let go of his money. What was meant to be a blessing became a burden.

It is easy to get our faith backwards, looking to Jesus to be a helpful presence who adds value to our lives and protects us from bad things. Of course, he does answer prayer and he does protect us from evil. However, we do not add Jesus to our lives to make our experience better, we recognise that he is God and we bow the knee. We remove anything that wishes to rival his power and influence and we devote our lives to him.

As I write this, I can hear the scream of individualism and pride inside me that does not want to submit to God. I can feel the desires in my heart that demand to be fulfilled. I hear them and I recognise them. However, I choose to lay them aside and keep my shelf clean. This is the way to freedom and this is how we learn to love. Through lives of worship.

Reflect

• What is on your shelf?
• What gets in the way of you living a godly life?
• What are physical objects that reinforce these?

Respond

Pause and Pray.

Lord Jesus, today I choose you. Only you. I lift you above all things and lay everything down at your feet. If there are things in my life that are out of place, help me to put them back into the right place. If there are things that are spiritually poisonous to me, help me to recognise them and remove them without regret. I worship and honour you above all things.

Amen