TRADING CARD

I collected baseball cards in the late 80’s and early 90’s.  It quickly turned from a harmless hobby to an obsession, an addiction, a problem.  While some struggled with drugs, gambling, or alcohol, I was abusing small pieces of cardboard with pictures on them.  Any money I could scrounge up went to buying more.  I’d meet new friends and ask, “Pssst.  Baseball cards?  You got cards, man?  Need some cards!”  And if they did we’d trade.  The goal was to find things you didn’t have while trading something you had too many of.  One day I finally counted all my cards.  The total passed 9,000 (I told you I had a problem).

Down the street there lived a boy that Mom didn’t want me hanging out with.  When he came around, he brought trouble.  You remember that kid, right?  No?  It’s probably because you were that kid;)

One day, “bad kid” came by and Mom wasn’t home.  “You want to hang out?” he asked.  “Sure!” I responded.  “You got cards?” he asked.  “Sure!” I responded.  He pulled out a box and proceeded to convince me why I needed the cards he had, “You need this card.  You don’t have it.  I really shouldn’t be parting with it.  It will be valuable in the future.  But if you give me that one card of yours I’ll give you these five.  One being this favorite card of mine that I shouldn’t really part with.  But I like you and I think this card will look good in your collection.”  What card did he want from me?  My most valuable card, a Ken Griffey Jr rookie card.  Did I trade it?  Yes.  What did I get for it?  Five worthless cards.  I was tricked into trading something valuable for something worthless.

Satan hates God.  And the #1 way he tries to hurt Him is by tricking God’s children into trading God for a false god.  The One you need for something you don’t.  The Essential for the useless.  The Answer for the problem.

I came across this story in my devotions this morning:

² Now Ahaziah fell through the lattice of his upper room in Samaria, and was injured; so he sent messengers and said to them, “Go, inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this injury.” ³ But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron?’ ⁴ Now therefore, thus says the Lord: ‘You shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’” So Elijah departed. 2 Kings 1:2-4 (NKJV)

The King of Samaria fell and seriously injured himself.  So instead of turning to the true God of Heaven for answers, he inquires of this Philistine false god.  Perhaps the king believed in God but lived as if there was no God in Israel.  I’ve heard a phrase that perfectly describes this:  Practical Atheists.  People who “believe in God” yet fail to turn to Him when need arise.  They say they trust him but live like there’s no God when it’s time to trust Him.  They trade the REAL God for a fake one.  Ahaziah didn’t turn to the REAL God for help.  So, he didn’t get REAL help.

Don’t fall for the enemy’s oldest trick—duping you into pursuing something broken instead of the Fixer, chasing after something that will wound you instead of the One who heals you, inviting in the thief instead of welcoming the Blesser. 

In the book of Jeremiah, God calls us out with these words:

"My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.  Jeremiah 2:13 (NIV)

So, which satisfies?  A spring of living water or a muddy puddle?  Perhaps you know the answer to that question all too well.  You’ve been trying to quench that thirst at the muddy puddle of your making.  I want to encourage you—Don’t forsake Him any longer.  A bad trade can be remedied when it comes to your walk with God.  Confess.  Turn around. Pursue God.