Laffy Taffy

“I will trade you one Laffy Taffy for one Star Wars Lightsaber, deal?”

The nine year old and his five year old brother are standing in a sunlit, messy upstairs room. Mom is downstairs; negotiations are safe.

The crafty older brother clearly knows the Laffy Taffy is no fair trade for the Lightsaber. But in the secrecy of the upstairs playroom he also knows he can mold the young mind of his gullible younger brother into thinking he is getting the deal of a lifetime.

The five year old is not a complete idiot. He has a feeling something is up, but Laffy Taffy, with its funny jokes and its stretchy, sugary goodness is just calling his name! I mean yeah, the Lightsaber will last longer, and is a cooler toy, but he needs some sugar now and he could chew on that Lightsaber all night long and get nothing.

So, to fulfill his need for instant sugary gratification, the five year old hands over the Lightsaber, they shake hands and the deal is done.

Ever been on the wrong end of a trade? Realized too late the thing you craved would melt into nothingness in your mouth? Ever traded something of great value for something cheap and unsatisfying?

The Israelites were masters of the bad deal. Moses, God’s chosen leader of this often confused crowd, was on a mountain meeting with God. The people of Israel felt homeless and unsure of their future. So, instead of turning to the one true God, they made a golden calf and worshipped it instead.

Referring to this, David cuts right to the heart of their sin in Psalm 106:20-21;

“They exchanged the glory of God, for the image of an ox that eats grass.

They forgot God, their Savior, who had done great things in Egypt.”

The glory of God! That is big. What could possibly be better than the glory of God? The people of Israel had already seen God’s glory. What could be more fantastic than seeing plagues, Pharoah defeated, the parting of the Red Sea, a pillar of fire by night and a cloud during the day; delivery out of slavery and being led by God every step of the way?

Yet they traded that…for a few moments of worship to a cow. To the image of an animal that eats the very grass the One True God created. They forgot their God and Savior.

What a vivid picture of how we can easily fall into Satan’s lies. There is no other way to explain why an entire nation would choose an image of a cow over such an amazing God. But they did, and so very often, we do as well.

As God’s children we can experience a taste of God’s glory on earth. By sharing our faith, seeing Him change lives, seeing new truths in His Word, intimately praying to Him, enjoying His creation, there are so many ways we experience His glory. One day we will be in His presence and will realize to the fullest the incredible glory of our King. We are entitled to a personal relationship with the One True God if we believe in Him. That is an amazing gift only available to us by His grace and the death of His Son.

Like the five year old boy and the people of Israel, you have a choice. You can lust over the things in this world that give you instant gratification and empty results, or, live your life experiencing the glory of God. Satan will offer you some amazing “cows”, but remember; it is never as good or as lasting as it appears.

Hold on to your lightsaber, Laffy Taffy jokes are cheesy anyway.