July 2 - “Idol” Hands

 Read today’s texts first: Isaiah 4,5;  Psalms 115,116; Jude

MAXIMize YOUR DAY

We see evidence of Him everywhere, but the fact that
we can’t see God is the greatest proof that He is! 

This was one of those amazing days when everything made sense to me (believe me, that doesn’t happen often!). The Psalms reading, wedged in the middle of the Isaiah and Jude readings, unlocked the perspective I needed to understand all three. It also answered a random question asked of me at work today: “how can you believe in a God you can’t see?” Plus, it gave me much-needed wisdom in handling a computer “demon” (aka. “glitch”) trying to force its way into my life while I was writing this very journal entry.  Confused? Let me give you a paragraph on each piece of my day.

First the insight from Psalms: Why do the nations say, “Where is their God?” Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him. But their idols are silver and gold, made by the hands of men. They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but they cannot see; they have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but they cannot smell; they have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but they cannot walk; nor can they utter a sound with their throats. (115:2-7). This is so clear it could be a quotation from Captain Obvious. Yet, both Israel and Judah in Isaiah’s day persisted in following man-made idols instead of the one true God who formed them as a nation and miraculously gave them the Promised Land. They were the vineyard that had the best conditions possible, including the best grape trees, and yet produced bad fruit. Coincidentally, Jude’s letter was a warning about the same kind of people, those with “idol” hands, who were infiltrating the church 700 years later.

Speaking of coincidences, how about getting the answer from God before the question was asked (I usually figure out the answer after the asker is long gone). “How can you believe in a God you can’t see?” Similar question to the one the psalmist posed. The answer: if you have a God you can see, chances are he/she/it is man-made and with a limited shelf life. In other words, not the real God. God, the Creator, needs to be bigger than we are, probably beyond our dimensional limitations, outside time and space (eg. Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him). We see evidence of Him everywhere, but the fact that He is beyond us is the greatest proof that He is in fact God (Rom. 1:19-23).

While I was reading Bible texts from “Bible Study Tools.com” on my computer, flashing pop-ups were trying to get me to update my software. They were taking over my screen, pulsating with such urgency that I grew suspicious. I asked my wife, “should I click on it?” and God gave her the wisdom to shout, “don’t do it!” Then, as if on cue, the pop-ups included ads I knew didn’t belong in a Bible program! Bad fruit, man-made gods, computer demons/viruses, tempting “idol” hands (the misspelling is intentional, ok), trying to lure the unsuspecting into the devil’s playground! 

“Lord, thank You for preparing me through Israel’s foolishness, the psalmist’s insights, and Christian imposters, to answer serious questions, deal with insidious computer viruses, and see the obvious difference between man-made gods and the God who made man!”