Discerning your Near Idols
By Darrin Patrick
That most basic question which God poses to each human heart: has something or someone besides Jesus Christ taken title to your heart's functional trust, preoccupation, loyalty, service, fear and delight? In order to get to the bottom of what the Bible calls idols, and what Dick Keyes calls your "heart title", ask yourself these diagnostic questions:
What other than Jesus has become your main source of significance, happiness, meaning and purpose?
What other than being a child of God are you using as your primary identity?
What have you substituted for God in your life?
What have you used to make yourself feel accepted or worthy before God, yourself and others?
Another way to discern our idols is to begin to take note about what we get emotional about as our idols are revealed because they arouse powerful emotions when our idol is threatened or taken away. If your begin to pay attention to your emotional life you can begin to discern your idols.
Questions that expose Near Idols (Keyes, Keller, Kaufman)
What do I worry about most?
What, if I failed or lost it, would cause me to question whether or not I wanted to live?
What do I rely on or comfort self with when things go bad or get difficult?What do I do cope?
What are my release valves? What do I do to feel better?
What do I think most easily about? What does my mind go to when I am free? What preoccupies me? What do I daydream about?
What makes me feel the most self-worth? What am I the proudest of? What do I want to be known for?
What do I lead with in conversations?What do I want to make sure that people know about me fairly early on in the conversation or relationship?
What prayer, unanswered, would make me seriously think about turning away from God?
What do I really want and expect out of life? What would really make me happy?What is my hope for the future?
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