Recently I have been taking some time with Psalm 23. You know the passage about The Good Shepherd, the Lord is my shepherd, I have all that I need..." I've been looking closely at the social interactions of people on Social Media; apps like Instagram and Facebook. There are so many advertisements and solicitation of people to follow their lifestyle, what they buy, what they wear, where they go, what they eat, and most importantly their spiritual and moral practices. This is where it gets a little dangerous. People using scripture intertwined with their opinion. The truth of the matter is that we should only be following others as they follow Christ. IN ORDER TO FOLLOW CHRIST WE HAVE TO UNFOLLOW MAN.
"The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
2He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
3he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
for his name’s sake.
4Even though I walk
through the darkest valley,23:4 Or the valley of the shadow of death
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
5You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6Surely your goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
forever."
In this season it is overwhelmingly important that we reprioritize the acknowledging and following of God's spirit and voice in our lives. His word is very clear about exalting things above him, making them idols, more highly regarding than God, in Exodus 20: 3-5. Maintaining a relationship with God that by default puts everyone and everything in its most natural order; God, family/ friends, possessions/ experiences. It is easy to become distracted by all the noise and other voices, so it is overwhelmingly imperative that you get to know the voice of your heavenly Father- the things that are characteristic of him and are clearly outlined/ confirmed in his word.
3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.
5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
Final thought, remember when Jesus was fasting in the wilderness, Satan used scripture to attempt to deceive Jesus...but because he knew the word so well- he was able to spit scripture back to him. See the difference is slight and nuanced- it's the difference between right and almost-right. Be willing to UNFOLLOW all the counterfeits.