I love being active. If you’ve been around for a while, you already know this about me: I’ve been an aspiring Olympic athlete, a distance runner, and have even tried to become a Bollywood dancer. I get bored easily. I suppose this means I have an eclectic personality. This means that I embody the phrase: “Jack of all trades, master of none.” One might say I’m an expert novice. That’s an oxymoron if I ever heard one!
But no matter what fitness routine I’m into at the moment, one thing stays constant: my workout time is my time. My friends and family know that interrupting me mid-workout is risky business. I like things just so, on my schedule, and without interference, except when I’m trying something new. Then, the instructor has permission to interrupt. 🤣
Dethroning the Sacred Cow
There’s nothing wrong with fitness. As I mentioned earlier, I enjoy trying out various types of workouts (I’m not very good at any of them, to be honest). Being active energizes me and gives me a sense of rhythm to start the day (I usually exercise in the morning). But here’s the thing: even good things can become unhealthy when they get out of balance. When something starts to take priority over obedience, rest, relationships, or ultimately, God, it’s no longer just a hobby or habit. It becomes a sacred cow.
And sacred cows, no matter how shiny or justifiable they may seem, eventually need to be dethroned.
Did you know that the term “sacred cow” originates from Hinduism, where cows are considered sacred animals that are revered and protected, especially in India, where Hinduism is the predominant religion? In Hindu culture, cows symbolize life, motherhood, and non-violence. As a result, harming or killing a cow is traditionally seen as taboo.
The Except Areas of Life
Do you have any “sacred cows” in your life? Maybe there’s a subject, habit, relationship, or area of your life that feels like a “no-touch” zone, something you instinctively shield from anyone’s probing, from honest conversations, or any change. It may be a comfort, a hidden fear, a long-held opinion, or even a ministry role or lifestyle choice you’ve grown attached to. Whatever it is, it often sits in our hearts labeled “off-limits.“
Another way I like to describe a sacred cow is with a term I’ve coined: the “except” area of our lives. Those areas are the spaces we mentally or spiritually tag with invisible signs that say, “This is off-limits, God. You can have everything… except this.”
King Solomon Drifted
You probably have heard of King Solomon, the son of King David. His reign was like no other. He was called the wisest of men (see 1 Kings 4:29-34), and the nation of Israel prospered as long as he was king.
But, as wise as he was, even Solomon had an except area in his life. This except opened doors that would appear to lead to his downfall.
Now Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of his father David, except that he was sacrificing and burning incense on the high places.
I Kings 3:3 (NASB)
Solomon loved the Lord, except that he sacrificed and burned incense where he shouldn’t have. This appears to have been the norm at the time. But, as king, his role was to lead the way in proper worship practices. But this “little thing” that “everyone” did became his except.
It All Began With Except
Because Solomon had many wives (I think up to 700 plus hundreds of concubines, see 1 Kings 11), and because most of those wives, it appears, were not fully dedicated to the Lord, the Bible says that they turned Solomon’s heart from serving the Lord.
But Solomon’s fall from God’s favor wasn’t instant. It didn’t happen in a single moment of rebellion or one catastrophic decision. It came gradually, subtly, almost invisibly. One small compromise here, one exception there. A politically motivated marriage. Maybe a shrine was built to keep a foreign wife happy. A tolerance for idols he once would have torn down. Over time, although he loved the Lord, his heart began to drift.
This all began with except.
The Danger of the Drift
That’s the danger of sacred cows and except areas. They don’t usually drag us away from God in a dramatic moment. They erode our devotion slowly, reshaping our priorities and weakening our convictions. Before we know it, we’re far from the wholehearted obedience we once walked in.
What is your except? Is there a tendency towards leniency, or turning a blind eye, in one area of your life? A habit, relationship, or opinion? Don’t allow the destructive tendency of except to steal your heart, as it did Solomon’s, and cause you to drift from the Lord.
How do we avoid the drift that comes from except?
Identify what is your except.
Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal any area of your life that you’ve given the power of except to.
Surrender.
Take time in prayer to surrender that specific area to God.
Focus.
Choose one practical change this week that reflects a shift toward complete surrender, whether it’s a schedule adjustment, a conversation, or releasing a thought pattern.
Finally:
Stay watchful.
Solomon didn’t fall in a day. Ask God to help you remain alert to the excepts that can gradually turn your heart away from Him.
