Everybody’s heard of the Ten Commandments (One of my childhood Sunday School teachers used to refer to them as “God’s Top Ten”). But how many do you actually know? If you’re like most people, about six.
The past eight weeks I’ve been teaching a Bible study at my church based on Kelly Minter’s wonderful study, No Other Gods, which explores the first of the Ten Commandments. As I prepared last week’s talk I began thinking about what it would look like if a woman in 2013 really, truly, had no other gods before the one true God. What would her priorities be? How would she live? What kinds of decisions would she make?
As I thought, my fingers typed the following list, almost effortlessly, filling me with a sense of freedom—a kind of freedom from the self-imposed chains I sometimes feel when I try to live up to what my culture says I should be and do, rather than the simplicity of what God says I should be and do.
But at the same time, I felt a level of conviction, realizing that I still have areas of my life where God isn’t fully, completely Lord. It’s not that I’ve meant to live that way. It’s just that, frankly, I haven’t even been aware. Seeing the list in black and white made the concept of having no other gods concrete. It made it easier for me to wrap my mind around what it means to be fully surrendered to Christ and to follow the first commandment.
It must have helped other women, too, because I’ve had numerous requests for the list. So many, in fact, that I’ve decided to post the list here. I hope the list helps you, too.
When a woman has no other gods, what does she look like?
- She’s comfortable with her looks because beauty isn’t her god.
- She’s comfortable having others to her home, even if it’s meager, because her house isn’t her god.
- She’s comfortable forgiving because her pride isn’t her god
- She’s comfortable befriending all types of people because status isn’t her god.
- She’s comfortable obeying God rather than her own whims because she isn’t her god.
- She’s comfortable with plenty or with little because possessions aren’t her god.
- She’s comfortable without aids to help her relax, unwind or have fun because addictions aren’t her god.
- She’s comfortable saying no because performance isn’t her god.
- She’s comfortable saying yes because self-protection isn’t her god.
- She’s comfortable with the messy parts of life, because perfection isn’t her god.
- She’s comfortable being in the background because fame isn’t her god.
- She’s comfortable serving because personal comfort isn’t her god.
- She’s comfortable giving because money isn’t her god.
- She’s comfortable standing up for truth and righteousness because popularity isn’t her god.
- She’s comfortable exercising self-control because food, clothes, alcohol, television, work or hobbies aren’t her gods.
“You shall have no other gods before Me.”
Exodus 20:3
The First of the Ten Commandments
