King & KingdomsUzorak

Growing up, everyone loved having substitute teachers. It always meant class was going to be a breeze. But it also meant some other things. Students acted less disciplined. Classes often learned less. At the end of the day, having a substitute is fun, but if you had one every day, you would be a worse student.

Substitutes can only bring temporary satisfaction or solutions--and it never satisfies like the real thing. Jeroboam learned this the hard way. He created substitute places of worship, substitute festivals, substitute priests, substitute sacrifices, a whole substitute religion, and all for the sake of convenience. But the substitute didn't satisfy and only eroded their faith.

Think it Over: Where are you substituting things in your spiritual life? Are you substituting one-on-one time with God for a quick video on social media? Or maybe real community in a church for loose friendships? Don't settle for substitutes; go for the real thing.