Whom have I in heaven but you? I desire you more than anything on earth. My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever.

Psalm 73:25-26

Dear God, there is amazing truth in these two verses. I mean, really, in heaven or on earth, whom have I but you? I’ve talked over the last couple of years about the idols in my life. My dependence upon the government and its provision, the military and its protection, my job and it stability, my bank account and its adequacy, my wife and her presence, or even my own health, as the psalmist says here–these are all idols I have in my life. Frankly, I’m not exactly sure how to completely purge them except to continuously acknowledge and confess to you that I know they are there and I don’t want them to be. I shutter to think of what it would be like if any or all of them were removed from my life.

Of course, I’m thinking about the people in Ukraine right now and how none of these things are available to them. Their government and military are not predictable. Their jobs. Their money. Their loved ones. Their own health. All of it is in jeopardy. Whom have they but you?

Father, please move in the world. Make this pain count. Protect people as they try to live their lives. Use this to draw us closer to you and unite us to each other. Help us each, especially those who call on you, to examine our own hearts and repent of the things we have pursued and of which we made idols. For my part, I worship you. I will work as unto you today. Live and be glorified in and through me.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen