Hope you'll forgive me, but I believe I am to continue in Genesis at least for a little while longer.
Genesis 2:8
The LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom he had formed.
I love this verse.
It reveals the mind and heart of God and gives me hope when I fear the unknown.
You know the future is always scary, isn't it. Especially if you're trying to come out of an addictive lifestyle. You feel like the whole world is a tuxedo and you're a pair of brown shoes. New places....new friends.....maybe even a new job....you feel like a fish out of water. You're trying real hard to adapt and fit in. You even try to generate some excitement..."Yea! I'm doing something different" yet all the while fear seems to be tapping on your shoulder whispering..."Why are you even trying....go back...go back...go back to what you know." Only trouble is, what you know (our old lifestyle) leads to death. So we're kind of caught in a bind. Do I press on out there into the unknown.....or do I give up and go back to my addiction? Believe me...you'll want to press on. Jesus is all up in the unknown...because our obedience in following him, leads us into his blessings.
In that simple verse from Genesis 2, we are given some insight into the way God operates. Notice what it says.
Step #1 - God planted a garden. Once again...the wording gives us a picture of God actually taking time and effort to create a place....a garden...in a specific location. Once it was completed, THEN he put the man there.
Did you catch that. God had everything in place before the man was put there to do the work God had for him. That tells me that whatever is out there facing me today, God has already been there and worked the ground, so to speak, has everything prepared for me and is just waiting for me to be get there. This truly does remove some of the fear about the unknown.
Our fear about the future (which is pretty common among us humans) comes from a lack of trusting God. Now hear me in what I am about to write. Since fear is common...our trust comes in spite of it. Not because of the lack of it. In other words....I trust God even more when fear rises up in me. I don't let the fear dictate to me my actions or my decisions. I turn that fear over to God and simply follow his directions and leading. (Yes..God still speaks and he will guide you through your decisions). What did Ol' King David write in Psalm 23---- Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. For you are with me. Your rod and staff, they comfort me. God stands ready to help us as we approach any unknown situation.
Let's move on to the next part of Genesis 2.
Verse 16-17 - And the LORD God commanded the man saying, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it, you shall surely die."
I love this!
God, in his great grace and love, gave permission before he gave restriction.
We're always caught up in the thought that God is a God of restrictions. A God who's all up in the "Do not's" of life. But here we see that God not only gave permission to enjoy everything in the garden.......He commanded the man to enjoy. Now if the man decided to not enjoy what God had provided, whose fault was that? God? Or man. Isn't that just like the devil and addiction to whisper in your ear about all the things you can't do? I tell the men who come through the program at Rapha...."You come in here and you're all caught up in what you will no longer be able to do. You're all tied up by places you can't go...so call friends you'll no longer be able to hand with...and activities that will no longer be a part of your life. And not once have you turned your attention to what you're going to get in place of all these things."
God is a God of abundant joy and freedom.
He is not a restricting God.
If you're a parent, are you going to hand your child a fork and say..."Hey! Go over there to that electrical outlet and stick this fork in the socket." No! You'll be looking out for their best interest and safety. God does like wise.
Don't let the devil lead you to plow the ground of discontent and fear today.
Step out into the day of new beginnings.
Breathe the air of liberty and freedom in Christ.
Consider all the possibilities that God will lead you into today.
I think maybe this will be a good day.
God on you....
mb
(just for the record, the picture up top of the farmer was the only thing I could think of since the scripture was about garden's and trees and fruit)
mb
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