When I was younger, I really wanted a Perplexus ball.

It’s a 3D maze puzzle inside a clear plastic sphere. You move the sphere around to get this small metal ball through the maze, without it falling off the edge.

I saw the game in a catalogue, and for weeks afterward I would sit in my room and just imagine how much fun I would have when I got it. I was convinced that with it, I would never be bored again.

When I bought it, the excitement wore off incredibly quick. I think I played with it six times in total. Turns out it wasn’t all I thought it would be.

Isn’t that how it goes? So often, we look to something, hoping that it will make us happy, fulfill us, comfort us. But in the end, it falls short.

Whatever you are looking to, there is something better. Something that will give you eternal joy, fulfillment, comfort, purpose or whatever you’re looking for.

WE ALL WORSHIP SOMETHING

One of the things I miss during this season is worshipping at church. But worship is so much more than singing praises.

We worship something when we give glory to it. If we value and treasure something above all else, we worship it.

What do you spend the most time and energy on? What are you ecstatic when you get, and distraught when you lose? Is there something you would sin to get, or to keep? That’s probably what you worship.

See, we were created to worship. But we rarely worship God.

When we worship something other than God, it becomes an idol. I don’t mean a little wooden statue that you bow down to. Idols take the form of anything that we value more than God, whether it’s time, people’s opinions of us, money, or a Perplexus ball.

As John Calvin said, our hearts are little idol factories. We are constantly drawing something in to worship.

We worship these idols for a reason. We’re looking for happiness, fulfillment, love, or comfort. Slowly, we put the weight of our souls on these idols. We lean on them more and more, hoping that they will give us what we seek.

But just like my Perplexus game wasn’t enough to keep me from boredom, the things we look to are not going to satisfy us. We’re always going to need one more dollar, one more hour, a higher mark, to be just a little bit skinnier. Our idols will never be enough, and they will fail us again and again.

WE CAN FIND FULLNESS IN CHRIST

Whatever we are looking for in idols can be found perfectly in Christ.

The comfort we yearn for is found in the shadow of his wings. The purpose we seek is in his eternal call. We can have unshakeable joy rather than happiness, heaven rather than more years on earth.

When we are full of Christ, we won’t look to worldly things to satisfy us. Imagine that you have been invited to a banquet at the king’s table. If on the way to the banquet, you saw a dirty hamburger on the side of the road, would you pick it up and eat it?

Looking to idols for satisfaction instead of Christ is just like that. Our idols will never satisfy us, but we’ve already been given all we need in Christ. So, rather than eating that hamburger, go to the banquet!

That doesn’t mean that your idols are bad. Good marks, money, a job aren’t bad things necessarily. They become bad when you look to them for something that only Christ can give you.

If we fill ourselves with Christ, we can enjoy those things without them becoming idols. We can strive for good marks, a good job, good friends, but not be crushed when we don’t get them, because we know that we are loved by God regardless. We can earn money, but hold it with an open hand, because we know that God is our provider and sustainer.

We can enjoy things, without looking to them for our hope and satisfaction.

It is a battle to live like this. We must be in constant prayer that Christ will fill us, so we don’t look to other things for satisfaction. That’s why I love doing devotions in the morning because it gives me time to ask God to satisfy me with himself, so I fill myself with other things throughout the day.

WE SHOULD WORSHIP GOD

When we are completely satisfied in Christ, we won’t worship other things.

The satisfaction we look for in idols can be found perfectly in Christ. We can turn from these idols, and worship God, our creator.

Though I miss worshipping with all of my church family, the good news is we don’t need to be at church to worship god. When we are satisfied in Christ, we worship him in everything we do, whether it’s laundry or singing praises. Even during this season of isolation, we can worship God by valuing him more than anything else.

Self-isolation has torn away so many of our idols. We no longer have control, people to please, or business to give us some sense of purpose. When the worry, the loneliness, the boredom hits you, look to Christ for satisfaction.

In this crazy time, we can still have peace, purpose, hope, and joy. Though so much has been stripped away, Christ has not.

Most of us have so much extra time right. I challenge you to use some of it (especially in the morning!) to satisfy yourself in Christ. Look to him for satisfaction, so you don’t fill yourself with dirty hamburgers.