Counterfeit Gods

Recently finished Tim Keller’s Counterfeit Gods and I’m currently trying to pinpoint my own idols. What are the idols in my life that I put before the one true God?

Keller says that we commit the sin of idolatry because, “there is something you feel you must have to be happy, something that is more important to your heart than God himself. We would not lie unless we first had made something – human approval, reputation, power over others, financial advantage – more important and valuable to our hearts than the grace and favor of God.”

In order to discover what those idols are, what are those things I must have, we can look to our thoughts and finances. Keller quotes Archbishop William Temple,”Your religion is what you do with your solitude.” He says, “the true god of your heart is what your thoughts effortlessly go to when there is nothing else demanding your attention…What do you habitually think about to get joy and comfort in the privacy of your heart?”

Then of course the easy question that helps us learn our idols. When I have discretionary money, what do I spend it on?

So far, with the thought I’ve given to this, one of my idols is sports. Keller says in the book that this would not actually be my idol, that there is something going on underneath the surface, a hidden idol. That leads me to this, my hidden idol is significance and the approval of others.

Here’s why.
1) I follow sports because if it comes up in conversation with other guys, I want to know the scores, the hot topics, stats, etc. I gain significance from knowing this stuff, and approval when others acknowledge that I know it. Why else would I keep up with the Carmello trade rumors? I don’t really care about the Nuggets or the Knicks.

2) Every year I get some cash for Christmas from parents and in-laws. Where does that money go? It’s my Astros ticket money. Heather and I have been to the opening day game of the Astros season 8 of the last 10 years. (we missed one because my son was born two weeks before the game and one because I could not get out of a conference I had to attend) I cannot imagine not being able to attend that game every year.

3) My thoughts often drift to sports. Even in fantasy. I daydream about being one of the guys on “College Gameday” or being a guest on “Mike and Mike in the Morning”.

I’m not sure what I’m going to do with this. Cut off cable? Then I would just spend more time watching games/highlights on the internet. This idol must be replaced with the one true God, then I could actually watch and follow sports without it controlling areas of my life. How do I do that? Well, I’m praying and looking forward to God’s response.

What are your idols? How do you replace them with the One who rightfully deserves to be first in our lives?

Trevor Bayne

I'm not a Nascar fan, but I now have a favorite driver. I love this kids humility. He says some things that are very mature for someone his age near the end of the interview.

Jesus in the Dugout

Maybe my favorite part of being on staff with Campus Crusade at SFA is the opportunity I have to invest in guys on the baseball team. Over the last 3 or 4 years I've been leading devotionals/chapel times in the dugout on Sunday mornings when we play at home. At first, thats all it was, I saw the guys on Sundays and that's about it.


Over the last year, I've been able to spend time at practice on occasion and I meet with a few of the players on a regular basis to talk about how they are doing in their relationship with God. I'm looking forward to the opportunity to talk with guys a bit more as I continue to spend time around the team.


For me to be able to hang out at the ballpark and talk with guys about Jesus, this ceases to be a part of my job. Its just plain fun.

Four Years Goes By Fast

Today, I ran into a familiar face on campus during an outreach time. As I began to talk with the guy, we recognized each other but couldn’t remember why. About halfway through the conversation he realized how we knew each other. I had led a Bible study with his fraternity three years ago when he was a freshmen and he had attended a few times. Now he’s a senior trying to graduate. Over the last year he and his girlfriend had a baby and were now trying to raise a 9 month old little boy while finishing school. Recently they were engaged and are planning on getting married this summer.

It was obvious from our brief conversation that he wasn’t a Christian although it seemed like he was open to learning more about a relationship with Jesus. We only had a few minutes with him but we were able to share the gospel with him and his fiancé. (She had walked up as we were talking)

My hope is that they would place their faith in Christ and the future of their son and family might be changed because of God’s work in their lives. My regret is that I did not pursue him further three years ago when he was a freshman so that he might have spent his college career seeking to grow in a relationship with God.

Willing to Go It Alone but Love the Team

Just a few days ago, I received a plaque for 10 years of serving with Campus Crusade for Christ. This caused me to think through the last decade and my life on staff with CCC. All of those years have been spent at SFA and we have really loved being here and leading our staff team for the last six years.

Right now, we have alot to celebrate. We have an amazing staff team that we love doing life with and serving together on campus. There have been about 20 students begin relationships with Jesus this year, one just this week. We are actively trying to share the gospel with several different student groups on campus. And we have, for the most part, had the money we needed. This year has really been alot of fun.

I began to wonder if all that went away. If we didn't have a staff team, or if we had very few students involved, and if we were trying to operate without much money, would we still stay here? Would we continue to trust God for the students at SFA?

I really think we would. We would keep walking with God, keep sharing the gospel with students.

I hope that doesn't happen. I hope we continue to see staff join the cause. I hope we continue to see changed lives among students, students taking the challenge to reach their peers with the gospel, and students willing to go to the world with the gospel.

But I think even if that wasn't the case we would still be here 10 years from now, unless they run us off.

Yankees Draftee Gets Kidney From Coach - ESPN Video - ESPN

Great story! I can only hope I would have the same kind of tenderness in my heart as this coach if I were presented with the same situation.

If you're in Baton Rouge, go out and give this guy a standing ovation when Wake Forest plays there next weekend.

Yankees Draftee Gets Kidney From Coach - ESPN Video - ESPN

Boldness in the Classroom

Today, a young lady involved with our ministry had the opportunity to take a bold stand for Christ in the classroom. The students in the class were asked to prepare a slideshow explaining more about who they are and what they’re like. She had included the gospel on one of the slides, but the professor never got to it.

Instead he asked the students what motivated them. After a few moments of silence, she held up her hand and said that she was motivated by the gospel and her desire to share the gospel with others.

The professor replied, “Why don’t you come up front and tell us about it.”

The student then proceeded to share her story about how she became a believer and explained the gospel to the entire class.

Sitting down, she wasn’t sure how her stand for Christ had gone over with the professor, but after class he asked her to stay a few minutes. The professor wanted her to know how impressed he was with her boldness. So am I.