Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Household Gods

I recently was convicted about that feeling I kept getting at the end of every day, "Wow, where did the time go? I didn't get A.B. and C. done." In prayer one morning, God showed me that computer stuff was getting in my way. I think maybe stay-at-home moms everywhere can identify with this. We rule our own time...our work is "never done"....and the computer (with its promise of social interaction without ever leaving the house) is always there, within reach. With those 3 things creating the Perfect Storm, I got a little carried away with facebook and blogging....and internet shopping.......and reading up on other people's blogs....and photos.....

*sigh*

The morning I was referring to I was sitting in bed sort-of dreading the day coming up...with its promise of "I'll get that done this morning"....which always turns into "halfway through the afternoon and the breakfast dishes are still piled up." .......and then suddenly all the other things I had to do that day started barking at me from the sidelines, too. Laundry jeered from the hallway, bread demanded to be made, coffee begged to be roasted, and the guilt of not fixing my husband lunch to take to work started to creep up. From the distance I could see my sewing project waving to me sadly......instantly my hands went to my iPhone for "comfort" from social networking. These jobs were cracking the whip over my head, and I just wanted to retreat to something FUN!

In the midst of all this, a phrase started to form in my head........household gods........and I remembered the frequent referrals to them in the old testament as being something the Israelites turned to and then back to God....then back to the idols, then back to God. I realized I had set up my own household gods around me everywhere. Everywhere I turned, there they were, set up, commanding me to bow down. I let them rule me, and I forgot my First Love, Jesus Christ. I repented of this idolatry, and asked God to be first again. I prayed for the power to abide in Christ and bear fruit instead of worshipping at the feet of laundry and dishes....and facebook.



PS. That's one of the reasons I've been cyber-silent for a few days......more on the rest later.

2 comments:

lislynn said...

This is EXACTLY why I gave up FB for Lent this year. The phrase "household idols" never occurred to me, but it resonates, loud and clear. That promise of fellowship is my downfall. Especially since we moved here and our nearest and dearest are only accessible via technology...

Joy said...

I really like what a gal said this morning in Bible Study. We all know when the Holy Spirit is telling us to spend time with Him. It might be at a time when we need the dishes done or the laundry folded, but those things can wait. In fact, when we take that moment to spend with Him, it seems He makes time for us to get done what we need to. Even if we don't...He's priority.

And I echo the cyber-fast. Total time-eater. Thanks for the thoughts!