Apr 27, 2011

Questions for Reflection: What's My Personal Idol?

Neither you or I likely have large, metallic figures standing in our yards, or placed strategically in our living rooms, like this guy:

Bronze idol
Photo Credit

But just because you don't sacrifice some of your dinner to a little doo-dad like him, that doesn't mean you don't have a personal, inner "idol"....something you love more, and plan your life around more, than God. An idol is simply anything that takes over our heart's throne, which rightfully belongs to God.

Here are some great questions to help identify idols, excerpted from David Powlinson's book, Seeing With New Eyes.
  1. What do I worry about most?
  2. What, if I failed or lost it, would cause me to feel that I did not even want to live?
  3. What do I use to comfort myself when things go bad or get difficult?
  4. What do I do to cope? What are my release valves? What do I do to feel better?
  5. What preoccupies me? What do I daydream about?
  6. What makes me feel the most self-worth? Of what am I the proudest? For what do I want to be known?
  7. What do I lead with in conversations?
  8. Early on what do I want to make sure that people know about me?
  9. What prayer, unanswered, would make me seriously think about turning away from God?
  10. What do I really want and expect out of life? What would really make me happy?
  11. What is my hope for the future?
Number 9-11 were the most helpful for me...as they left me thinking on the role my kids play in my life.

Which ones make you think, and why?

1 comment:

  1. Thank you, Natalie. Great post. Excellent questions. I'm going to take the list and go over each question prayerfully. My children are what come to mind right away.

    ReplyDelete