Gods At War, by Kyle Idleman

Gods At War is one of my favorite books (other than Bread & Wine) that I've read this year. Why does it stick out so much among the rest of my recent reads? Plain and simple: its relevant. Even if you think its not relevant to you personally, it is. The basic premise of the book is this: the true issue beneath all of our problems is idolatry. When we talk about the sins that affect us and rule our lives, darkening our hearts, they can all be boiled down to the core issue of idolatry. Upon reading this in the first chapter, I was a little skeptical (that's actually the title of Chapter One: Idolatry is the Issue). Could it really be that simple?  How does every struggle I face, every recurring sin that plagues me, possibly all boil down to idolatry. Afterall, isn't that something that only ancient people did... like when they crafted cows out of gold or carved crocodile-men out of wood? Surely something for ancient Egyptians and not modern-day me.

In his introduction, Idleman says: 

This book covers every possible source of idolatry I can think of--and many I would not have ever imagined. Idleman breaks it down into three categories: The Temple of Pleasure (featuring the gods of food, sex and entertainment), The Temple of Power (highlighting the gods of success, money and achievement), and The Temple of Love (exposing the gods of romance, family and me). As I was reading through the first group of gods in the Temple of Pleasure, I have to be honest- none of them screamed at me with conviction. I gleaned some valuable truths and new perspectives on Bible passages I'd read before, but nothing really hit home. As I started reading through the Temple of Power, I began to think (ironically, arrogantly and erroneously) that maybe I didn't have an idolatry problem after all.  Ha! That was when I came to the chapter about the god of achievement. Everything in this chapter bored deep into my heart, revealing what was true all along... I do have an idolatry problem. And to say I don't would be to suggest that I am free from all sin, which, as we all know of this fallen world, just simply is not true.   

In reading about the god of achievement, I was convicted with the story of Mary & Martha. Its not that what Martha was doing was bad- she was preparing and serving her Lord. But what Mary chose- worship- was better. Idleman goes on to talk about the git-r-done nature of our Western world, and I have to confess, I get caught up in that daily. I realized through reading this book, an idol doesn't have to be big and ugly (like lust), or even shiny and attractive (like money). It can just as easily be a daily checklist that is completed or a kitchen that always stays clean or a perfectly manicured lawn. (Though my idol of achievement is definitely not the last one!) Idleman writes, "Obviously there is nothing wrong with any of these achievements; in fact, these achievements can be acts of worship that glorify God. But when our lives are all about getting things done, we can find that there is not much room for God. Instead, our approach to worshipping God can be checking off a box on our to-do list labeled 'Go to Church.'"

I would venture to say that this book will hit home for any person who picks it up. In the weeks since I've finished this book, I have looked at life- my struggles and the struggles of my friends- and can definitely see how the core issue can be boiled down to idolatry. That's not to simplify or minimize the sin, of course. But seeing the heart of the matter for what it truly is a great place to start in surrendering it to God-- the ONLY one worthy of our worship.

You can purchase this book right now on Amazon. Its on sale now for only $8.99!!!  (Usually $14.99)

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com  book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 

July was an odd month, in that we had record low temperatures. Sure, there was one hot week (4-H fair week, of course) but the rest of the month was absolutely divine. We even had the windows open and air conditioning off for a while.  The month started with a good rain, and while Sean and most of my friends were at CIY conference in Michigan, I ate grilled cheese with tomato soup almost every night. We spent another day at the Children's Museum (thank you Nana & Papa Sam for the membership!) and my baby belly officially popped! Full-on maternity pants now. I had my 32nd birthday, which was a wonderful celebration with Gia and Sean. Sean cooked my fave meal (salmon, asparagus & couscous) and made me a white on white cake, also my favorite. We had lots of fun outside as the weather was so gorgeous and Gia discovered a love for Sonic tator tots and Starbucks cake pops. In a shocking turn of events, Sean and I got ANOTHER night to ourselves! This time, we met up with friends at Yatz in Traders' Point, went to Trader Joe's and hit up a Live Trivia night. Then we came home to our own bed and slept like babies all night long. Its amazing what not having to listen to a monitor will do! Gia and I had a great day swimming for 5 hours with friends, and we've played Settlers of Catan late into the night every Sunday (no youth group!). We hit up some garage sales, swung in Uncle Kyle's hammock and played with cousin Keegan. Oh yeah, and we finally paid off the last of the hospital bills from Gia's birth. It may have taken two years, but we're one (FINAL) step closer to being debt free!

I read a couple of great books this month, did a little cleaning & organizing (obviously before I was pregnant), and made some delicious ethnic meals. We spent lots of time with our friends and some girlfriends and I had a sewing day. We made tons of nursing covers! Hubs found a jackpot of morrel mushrooms, which we promptly devoured. We had a few fun nights at the X youth group and even got dressed up in our Egyptian garb for an authentic-ish meal of Koshary!

I love all these activities, except now that I am also a mom, our summer schedule looks a lot different.  Mainly, I don't go on as many (or any) trips and the evening activities are relegated by their start time vs. Gia's bedtime. I don't mind this at all for the most part (though I am really sad I'm not going to CIY in Holland, MI next week. The weather will be so beauitful!) but it does make for some long weeks of just me & Gia hanging out. I don't know what its like for any of you other moms out there, but the hours between 3 pm and 6 pm seem to be the most difficult, especially when I know Sean won't be coming home.  Its the hottest part of the day, I'm usually worn out by then (even after naptime!) and my creativity for creating something fun is desperately waning. My default is to go shopping but I always wind up spending money, which, obviously is not so good.

So the first week Sean was at Junior High camp, Gia and I went to the Dollar Store. (Yay for an activity we could do between 3 and 6!!) I was on the look-out for any handful of things that I could pull out of the closet when I was at the end of my activity rope and couldn't stand another episode of Dora or Super Why. I spent about $16 total and got enough items that I hope will keep us busy when the long, hot days call for some indoor fun. (The $16 does include a flower mylar balloon for Gia and a package of Smarties for me.)  A few days ago, I pulled out the first of our Dollar Store Summer Fun items, and it was really a great time!

Dollar Store Items:

• Package of hot-wheels type cars (3 for $1)
• One roll of masking tape ($1... self explanatory on the price, right?)

To moms of boys, this is probably nothing new. But Gia hasn't really played much with cars except for when we're at friends' houses. She always loves it and likes to make "tracks" for her cars with the bristle blocks she got for Christmas. The masking tape didn't stick extremely well to the carpet, but the roll of painter's tape I was originally going to buy was about 1/4 the size of the masking tape.  As we played on, this track grew and grew... it eventually went under the slide and had several intersections. That's the great part about using this tape... just tear out the section where you want the new track to go! Bonus points: Gia loved pulling up the tape when it was time to clean up!!

However, it wasn't very far into the book before I began to bristle with discomfort at Morris's writing. I had no idea who Debbie Morris or her husband were prior to picking up "The Blessed Woman" but by page 6, I had learned about just how "successful" and "blessed" this couple has been with a church attendance averaging over 20,000 per week, a television show, conference and magazine.  At the risk of sounding a bit jaded, I'm just not into people like that. I am not trying to pass judgement on someone I don't know, or presume that their ministry is a sham--its obviously ministering to many, many people.  However, I have been a part of the whole "mega church" movement (my husband was a pastor) and I'm really honestly over it.

Despite my initial distaste for the way Ms. Morris talked about their ministry, I forged through to the next chapter. Sadly, I found much of the same thing that was in the first chapter-- a lot of chatter about her or her husbands ministry and influential position, and very little about the woman of the Bible the chapter was supposed to be covering. Chapter after chapter, I continued reading. I underlined a few interesting thoughts here and there, but overall, I was sorely disappointed in the content of this book. 

Again, I know nothing more of this author than what she has written in this book. And perhaps my discomfort with her personal subject matter has more to do with my own personal experience than anything else. But isn't that what makes something appealing to one person and not so to another? Sadly, I cannot say I would recommend this book to anyone else. If you are looking for a study on women of the Bible, this probably isn't the one for you.