STAY FIT: Strengthening Your Connection To JesusSample

The book of 2 Kings describes Israel’s slide into exile because of its unfaithfulness to God. Because of a few righteous kings that brought reformation and centered the people’s focus back on Yahweh, the exile was occasionally delayed. 

Josiah was one of those good kings. He comes to power in Chapter 23, and he immediately begins to tear down the idols and tools of worship devoted to other gods. We’re told: “Furthermore, Josiah got rid of the mediums and spiritists, the household gods, the idols and all the other detestable things seen in Judah and Jerusalem.”

Household gods? We aren’t told what these household gods were, but I picture little idols of some sort sitting on a coffee table or hanging on walls throughout the house. Whatever they may have been in ancient Israel, it made me curious about the household gods that exist today.  

Initially, a variety of things came to mind: my phone, my computer, television, and food. What stood out to me most as a potential household god was peace and quiet. I love peace and quiet. I look forward to it. I feel like I need it to commune with God. I get very little of it in my home with three young boys and a fourth on the way, but therein lies the problem. 

My household god of peace and quiet leads me to assume that God is not present in the loudness and chaos and causes me to miss what he wants to do or say during those times (which are abundant in this season of life). 

So, what about you? What “household god” is getting in the way of your “most important relationship”?

Adam Johnson
North Point Community Church