Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Genesis 1-4

Today is the beginning of a New Year, and a great time to jump in and start reading with the Everyday Reading Project.  We start with the story of God's creation in Genesis 1-4.  It's amazing really.  God's Spirit hovers over the water and speaks everything into existence, light, day and night, land and sky, plants and animals, and man.  God did all of this in six days, and He made the seventh day Holy, for resting from His work.  Think of all the details that make up God's beautiful, perfect creation.  Talk about power and glory!  Wow!  

It fills me with awe to think that God made you and me in His very image.  And not only that, He made us, men and women, for each other.   

27 
27So God created mankind in his own image,

    in the image of God he created them;

    male and female he created them.

18 The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”

23 The man said,
“This is now bone of my bones

    and flesh of my flesh;

she shall be called ‘woman,’
    for she was taken out of man.
It was "all good, " literally, until the famous "fall."  Adam and Eve, though made for each other, also found trouble together.  They ate fruit from the exact tree God explicitly told them was off limits in the Garden of Eden.  Eve gets the blame, but Adam ate without question.  Now, sin is a part of our everyday life in this world.  None of us are perfect, except by God's grace in Christ.  Thank goodness we know about Jesus today.  I can't imagine what it would have been to live in fear, without Him.

The forbidden fruit that the original couple faced is not unlike the sin we face day in and day out. Our reasoning, over-analytical minds often tempt us to question God's will and go off course, ending up in a load of hurt and trouble. 


Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?

As believers, our biggest mistake is not considering the source of our guidance when we make decisions, right?  Even small decisions can lead to big trouble.  What does God want us to do?  That's the real issue.  God gives us clear direction, if we will ask Him for it.  What if Adam and Eve had asked God what to do when the serpent crept along and played with Eve's mind?

I have a bad habit of over-thinking God's guidance for me.  I don't need to understand what God wants me to do.  I just have to do it.  It doesn't have to make sense.  I just have to hear God clearly and trust Him above all the other powerful influences vying for my attention in this life.

We are all tempted at times.  God knows best and wants the best for us.  His voice is there to protect us and guide us.  So when deciding what to do, when there's any question between right and wrong, God's my mighty counselor.  

Don't get me wrong.  I make plenty of bad decisions, but God never makes a bad decision   And the good news for today is that there's always good news with God.   God is always there for us.  Even after Adam and Eve admitted to doing the opposite of what God told them to do, God was there clothing them and providing for their every need.  

He does the same for us.  He knows we are sinners even before we are willing to admit it.  He loves us unconditionally with open arms.

A prayer for today-


Dear God,

Thank you for loving me even though I am a sinner.  Forgive me for all the ways I fail to hear Your direction.  Help Your Word come alive in me and be my guide.  Give me the good sense to distinguish Your way from all the distractions in the world around me.  You are my Mighty Counselor.

In the name of Jesus I pray,
Amen

Blessings,

 *This post is part of A Mind-Maker-Upper's Everyday Reading Project.  Click here to read more.






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