Born to be servants, not gods

Back in 2013, I read the newest book by a favorite author of mine, Kyle Idleman. The book was titled "Gods At War". I thought it was a great book on the subject of idols in our life. Each chapter was on a different "god" that is often present in our lives. The final chapter was "the god of me." I can't remember much of what he wrote in that chapter or the others, but the idea of the god of me has been on my mind lately.

  We can have a lot of gods in our lives, but they all hinge on that one: the god of me. We have turned into such a me, me, me society. Everything is all about making me feel good, pleasing me, what makes me happy.

  Worship and church has ceased to be God-centered, but is instead about what makes us happy, how we feel. We approach worship and church attendance like going to Baskin Robbins Ice Cream.... we pick whatever flavor makes us happiest

 Our marriages are falling apart because two self-centered people marry and are more concerned about what makes the god of me happy, then truly loving their spouse unselfishly like God would have them do.

Pleasure makes the god of me happy, so we have affairs, look at porn, smoke, drink, spend our money the way we want to spend it. Whatever makes us happy is what matters.

We claim to love God and want to serve Him, but the god of me wants sexual pleasure, so we overlook verses in the Bible that say sex with another of the same gender is sinful and put our wants and needs before God.

We selfishly hoard our time to do what we want to do: TV, sports, books, shopping, playing video games, playing on our computers and smart phones, while ignoring a world going to hell around us. After all, the god of me needs "me time".

We try to be first in line, we try to find the closest parking place, we want served and waited on as fast as possible when shopping and eating out and get impatient if we have to wait a few extra minutes.

  I recently ordered a new game system from Amazon, and they waited a whole week to ship it. I was irritated, I was impatient. I found myself wishing I had just bought it at Walmart where I could have got it instantly, but Amazon had offered 6 month financing so I was kind of stuck buying it from them, but I wanted it NOW, not in a week and a few days.

  The god of me doesn't like to wait for anything. It wants fed now, it wants sex now.... not after marriage. The god of me is happiest in a fast food, drive through society as long as he doesn't have to wait in line at that drive through.

  It has become all about us. But that isn't the way of the Bible, and not what God wants. Jesus said the first shall be last and the last shall be first. He said if we want to be great in His Kingdom, we are to be servants.

  I am no wise man, and never claim to be one..... but I wonder if that is the problem in so many people's lives. I wonder if that is the reason for so many failed marriages, broken homes, addictions, foreclosures, bankruptcies, crime, spiritual problems,  and a host of other problems: We all have gotten so used to making ourselves happy that it influences everything in our lives from the way we worship to how we love and treat our spouses.
 
 If we had the heart of a servant, if we loved others as we love ourselves, if we put others first and crucified the god of me, what a difference it could make in  our lives. But the god of me isn't easily dethroned, and lives on in way too many hearts of even the most faithful of church attendees.

  God help me to stop bowing to the god of me, and to concentrate on what God wants for me in every area of my life. That is the way He said to do it, after all.