The elephant in the room

I wanted take my wife out to eat the other night for our aniversary. We were going to go to the Thai restaurant. We like the food and have a discount voucher so everything should have been fine but alas I had some misgivings. I have been inside the restaurant to get takeaway so I know they have a massive in your face shrine in there the becomes the focus of the room. I was sort of planning how I could raise the issue of the Idol with the owners sensitively more with a purpose of finding out if they offer the food served to this false god than evangelizing them. This may have been selfish but I dont like making non christians feel ackward. Anyway as we where parking outside I noticed that they now have a image of their god outside as part of their advertising, well that was to much for me we got back in the car and went to an establishment that has invisible idols so we didnt have to be put off our dinner.
As WASP we mostly like to keep our idols to the invisible kind because its harder for anyone to level a charge of idolatry against us having not witnessed us bowing down to any actual statue. All the more so when very few people are willing to do this important work of calling a spade a spade.
I believe we all have personal  idols still though we may put them in the cupboard when we ask Jesus into our hearts but some times if we feel Jesus isnt doing enough to satisfy us we can go back to the idols to complain about Him. Santificaton is to me the process where we progessively open every secret corner and hideway of our selves to the Holy Spirit and smash every hidden idol we find with the hammer of Gods truth. This can be painful because we can have strong attachment to some of these idols.
Thats personal idols. That is difficult enough.

 When large groups of people get together and all bow down to the same idol and call it Christ it is even harder for anyone to point out the true nature of elephant in the room.

I wise man once said "I don't generally believe we should or can christianize a pagan holy day."

The same goes for any idea invention or system. If it came from pagan origins it will lead to a pagan desitinaton no matter how many Jesus stickers we try to stick on it along the way.l
As Christians we all have pagan origin but myst be totally transformed by rebirth and Santificaton to enter eternal life.
Education is not a pagan idea it was started by christians to reach out to children who were either without believing parents or whos parents were neglecting their duty to raise their children in the knowledge of God. This is just obedience to the great commission this is done in the authority of Jesus.
Somewhere along the line though education has been hajacked by secular humanists the state has assumed control of it by controlling the funding and teachers qualifications and the curriculum etc.
The authority to do all this has been usurped by the states it has not been given to them by God and christian teachers now walk a very fine line in terms of legitimate authority being empowered by a state which has stolen its authority.

If we want God to empower our ministry which we certainly do we must do it in His authority without requiring an unequal yolking with secular powers. Jesus is king all by Himself and won't share His glory with another. He doesn't need the government's help or money to make disciples.
If the good work we are doing turns out to be wood hay and stubble I pray that we are not so heavily invested in it that we can't step away when the consuming fire tests its worth.