Golden Calf

"When the people saw that Moses was so long

in coming down from the mountain,

they gathered around Aaron and said,

'Come, make us gods who will go before us.

As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt,

we don't know what has happened to him.'"

Exodus 32:1

The din of a wild party reached his ears as he descended the mountain.  After spending forty days listening only to the sound of the Lord our God's voice, the raucous carousing assaulted his holy ears.  As he rounded the corner at the bottom of the mountain he saw it: what used to be jewelry formed into the shape of a calf.  What were they thinking?  What is wrong with these people? (Exodus 32)

As hard as it is for me to believe that the people of Israel would so quickly and easily abandon the God who delivered them from the bondage of slavery, if I am honest with myself, I may find the same adulterous attitude in my own heart.  While I don't go so far as to make an image out of something created and offer sacrifices to it, there are times I turn to other things or people during certain times in my life.  What can set my heart to stray?

Waiting

Sarai and Abram had waited ten long years for a child after God had promised to make Abram into a great nation.  Even though God had confirmed this promise some time later, giving him a vivid vision of the covenant the Lord made with him, Abram still wondered how his descendants could receive this vast land if he didn't even have a son. (Genesis 15) 

"Honey, I've been thinking.  I know how stressful this time of waiting for a child has been.  Since the Lord has closed my womb, there must be another way He expects us to go about bearing a child.  I think I have the solution; why don't you sleep with my Egyptian servant?  This way, you will have a child that God can use to fulfill His great promise."

The plan sounded good to Abram.  Ten years is a long time to wait for God to act.  Surely He didn't mean for it to take this long.  Yes, there must be a part he needed to play and this seemed like just the thing.  What a time to celebrate!  The child of promise would soon be born! (Genesis 16:1-3)

Interestingly, God rejected this child of their own plan and the couple had to wait an additional 15 years before Sarai, then renamed as Sarah, would bear her own child.  Isaac would become the child through whom the blessing would be fulfilled. (Genesis 21:1-7)

It is hard to wait for God to meet a need, bring about a vision, or fulfill a promise made.  When it takes longer than I care to wait, I may do as Sarai did, thinking there is a part I'm expected to play.  While I have grown up hearing that God helps those who help themselves, the principle behind this common saying is not rooted in truth.  Instead, I learn from God's Word that when I wait on the Lord, putting all my hope in Him and letting Him choose the timetable, method and means, I will be renewed in my strength and given power to persevere as I let God take the reigns. (Isaiah 40:31)

While it is not easy to wait, letting God lead is always the better option.  Turning to other solutions means I have given up on the Lord.  Even though I may not consciously mean to abandon my faith, that is exactly what I do when I take matters into my own hands instead of waiting for God to provide in His perfect time.

Placing my trust in other people or solutions during a long period of waiting on the Lord is a way that I worship my own golden calf.

Expectation

The land had been promised long ago.  By all accounts, it was an abundant land filled with giant grapes, luscious pomegranates, delectable figs and many good things.  It was described as a land flowing with milk and honey; it seemed ideal!  The only problem was the people who lived there: They would not easily give up their precious land, creating for them ferocious opponents and an impossible obstacle.  This is not what the people of Israel expected when God said He would give them a land to call their own.  (Numbers 13:25-33)

I can relate to the plight of God's people.  There are many times when God supplies my needs, answers my prayers or solves my problems in ways I don't expect.  When I carry a certain expectation, assuming that God will give me what I want, when I want it and how I want it, I can count on the fact that I will be disappointed.

Instead of expecting God to work in the way I as a mere human operate, I would be wise to trust God to do as He sees fit, watching and waiting expectantly for Him to blow my mind with His creative response.  I limit God when I assume He'll work my way.  

When I need relief from a painful situation, instead of delivering me from it like I expect, He may give me more grace so I can persevere through it.  When my bills are mounting and my pay is shrinking, I may think the answer is more income.  In His infinite wisdom, however, God may have a lesson for me in the middle of the struggle, choosing instead to delay recovery in order to teach me gratitude and give me an opportunity to improve my stewardship.  When I think the answer to my struggles is found in delivery from it, God may choose to leave them as a thorn in my side that will keep me humbly reliant on Him.  (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Expecting God to work in a way I deem as best is one way I turn to my own golden calf.

Doubt

"Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?"

"No, He said we can eat our fill from every tree except the one in the center.  Of that tree, we must not touch or we'll die."

"How absurd!  You won't die! God knows that once you partake of that fruit, your eyes will be opened and you'll know good from evil.  Die?  Preposterous!" (paraphrased from Genesis 3:1-6)

And with that seed of doubt planted firmly in Eve's mind, she began to consider the off-limits tree, something about which she had never before thought.  Doubt is a powerful enemy of my faith.  When I begin to question what I know to be the truth, I am headed down a path that takes me away from God and His perfect plan for my life.

In contrast, faith believes without seeing, never needing to understand something completely in order to trust it but simply knowing that if God said it, there is no need for further scrutiny.  When I am tempted to question what I know to be true, then I would be wise to turn away from doubt and remind myself of the truth as I have learned it.

For instance, when I know God has placed me in a certain position for His purposes, I can stand firm.  If I am tempted to look for a new job, doubting His sovereignty because the atmosphere is difficult and full of strife, I must remind myself that I am salt and light in a lost and darkened world. (Matthew 5:13-16)

Other times I may wonder how God could possibly use my testimony to touch anyone's life for Christ.  Instead of questioning the power of my story of salvation, I can remind myself I am a sinner who has been plucked from the jaws of death and freely given the gift of life for all of eternity.  (Romans 5:6-11)  What is more powerful than that?

Sometimes I even wonder if I'm on the wrong track because things seem to be going in a way that is difficult and causes much suffering.  I start to wonder if I might have heard God wrong, or maybe I misinterpreted His message because surely this can't be His plan for my life.  It is then that I can remind myself that God brings good out of every situation and there's nothing I can do to counteract this goodness.  (Romans 8:28)

Nurturing the seeds of doubt planted by my Enemy is another way I turn to my own golden calf.

I have never seen anyone make for themselves an idol made of gold, silver or wood.  Still, idol worship is a big problem in this day and age.  While I don't intend to stray from my faith in the One True God, I do have a tendency to wander away from Him.  I am guilty of making my own golden calf when I lose my patience while waiting, expect God to work in a way I desire and doubt what I know to be true.  It is my desire that I would stand strong this day as I trust solely and completely in the Lord.

As I begin this day it is my prayer that I can trust God without giving into the temptation to go my own way.

When do I buy into the lies Satan tries to sell me?

How am I losing faith in God by leaning more on what I think than on the truth?