“And God said unto Jacob, Arise, go up to Bethel, and dwell there: and make there an altar unto God… Then Jacob said unto his household, and to all that were with him, Put away the strange gods that are among you.” – GENESIS 35:1-3 (KJV)
Before God could bless Jacob’s household afresh, every strange god buried under the family’s tent had to be dug up and destroyed. Every altar, once erected, whether by your own hand or an ancestor’s, remains active until it is deliberately broken. This month, God is calling you back to your Bethel: the place of true altars, where every strange covenant is renounced and true worship is restored.
Jacob’s household had accumulated foreign gods along the journey, idols picked up in Padan-aram, charms carried perhaps out of superstition or convenience. God did not simply bless Jacob despite these idols; He commanded a cleansing first. Put away the strange gods. Purify yourselves. Then go up to Bethel.
There is a pattern here for every believer seeking a fresh encounter with God: revival often requires renunciation before it produces results. What strange altars has your family unknowingly carried, agreements made in desperation, charms inherited from grandparents, covenants entered before salvation, even subtle idols of money, status, or fear that now sit where God alone should reign?
This month, take time to examine your household honestly. Do not merely pray against altars in general terms; be specific before God about what needs to be renounced. Jacob’s household buried their idols under an oak tree and never looked back, and it was there, at Bethel, that God renewed His covenant and blessed him as Israel. Your Bethel moment is available. Break every evil altar deliberately, replace it with true worship, and watch God restore what those altars had stolen.