Pushing God Aside

He also brought the bronze altar, which was before the Lord, from the front of the temple—from between the new altar and the house of the Lord—and put it on the north side of the new altar. 2 Kings 16:14 (NKJV)

King Ahaz of Judah did evil in the sight of the Lord and even sacrificed his own son to pagan gods. After aligning with King Tiglath-Pileser of Assyria to defeat the kings of Isreal and Syria, he goes to meet the king of Assyria and is impressed by his altar. He sends for Uriah the priest, who gets its dimensions and builds an exact replica in Jerusalem. After coming back from Damascus, King Ahaz has the Assyrian altar placed in the front of the temple with the Lord's altar placed to the right of it, signifying its importance over God.

Like King Ahaz, we tend to push God aside and put other things in our lives. Worldly pleasures such as entertainment and materialism can come first. We may become too busy to seek Him because we are overcommitted. We may be too involved in what is going on in our social media or be playing online games instead of seeking God. Or we may be letting worry, anxiety, or hidden sin rob us of the peace that God provides. Romans 12:2 says, "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." As believers, we need to take a break from this world, do an inventory, and put God in His rightful spot. When we realize that we are pushing God aside, and bring Him back to the front, we find true pleasure, we find order in our lives, and we find the peace that only comes from Him.

Choose to put God first in your life. Start and end each day with prayer and scripture reading. Make decisions based on God’s will and values, asking yourself if your choices align with His teachings and priorities. Set a scheduled time every day to meet with God and ask for His guidance and be determined to keep it. Maybe you need to get up an hour earlier, seek him during your lunch, or right before bed. Commit to doing a daily evaluation and see where God is fitting in your daily schedule. If you are playing that game on your phone instead of seeking God, maybe you need to delete the game. Seeking God first and not putting Him to the side brings peace, purpose, guidance, and fulfillment to your life.