The Quiet Mercy of Having Our Idols Removed

Life is a journey we’re all walking together toward the same physical end. Along the way, we keep discovering places where we thought we were in control—places where we believed we were owed something. One by one, those illusions get stripped away. And every time it happens, it exposes another corner of our heart where we had placed too much hope, too much trust, too much identity.

Eventually, we come to realize that everything in this life will be taken from us at some point. It’s not a question of if—only when. And around that same time, we begin to see that God never promised us the things we quietly assumed He owed us. He never promised the family we always wanted, the career we dreamed of, the lifestyle we imagined. He didn’t even promise that our children would grow old, that our parents would age gracefully, or that friendships would remain unchanged.

But a fulfilling life comes when we learn—slowly, painfully, beautifully—to meet the loss of each treasured thing with the lovingkindness of Christ, placing Him in His rightful place, when we begin to see that every good gift is not an entitlement but an act of grace from our heavenly Father.

He never promised us children. He never promised a happy marriage or a comfortable life.

But He did promise forgiveness of sins to all who call upon His name. He promised an eternal hope to all who love, trust, and follow Him—the One through whom all things were created.

Life is a race of sorts. The sooner Christ becomes our highest treasure—above spouse, above children, above success, above every earthly blessing—the more deeply we find fulfillment because life is truly fulfilling when He is High King, long before any of those precious gifts are taken from our hands.

What gift have you put in the place of high kind and needs to be demoted for the true and proper High King?