My son, give me your heart... Prov. 23:26
Dear children, keep yourselves from idols. 1 John 5:21
One thing I ask from the LORD… to gaze on the beauty of the LORD. Ps. 27:4
Heavenly Father, thank you for addressing us as, “Dear children”—for that is who we are, all by your grace-doing. Through the Gospel, you raised us from our spiritual deadness, and have placed us in a state of eternal belovedness.
You have our hearts for eternity, but you crave our affection today, and every day. What a heavenly kiss your jealousy is.
But just as Eve was tempted and seduced, so there are other lovers and empty idols clamoring for our attention and devotion. We’ll be prone to wander until the Day we are filled with your wonder. Thank you for securing that Day, and for promising us everything we need until then.
So, how do we keep ourselves from idols, Father? By gazing upon your beauty in the Scriptures, marinating in your love for us in Jesus, listening to the Spirit’s testimony to our belovedness.
By living at the pace of grace—rather than by the dictates of our fears, the whims of our flesh, the mirage of political salvation, the barrenness of busyness… and the list goes on.
Father, the rest of October is gonna be a war for our hearts. May you be the most hope-fueling, heart-capturing, soul-satisfying reality in our loves. So very Amen we pray, in Jesus’ beautiful and bodacious name.