Do you ever look around this world and wonder how things got so bad? How this creation that was supposed to be good turned into such a difficult, tragic, evil place?
I know that we have all heard the creation story many, many times. But I think it's good to revisit it every once in a while. . . It helps us understand why we are where we are right now, and reminds us that this world - the way it is now - isn't what God wanted for us.
It is crazy to think about Adam and Eve having unhindered intimacy with God. Can you even imagine living in a perfectly beautiful place, sharing wonderfully peaceful love, and walking in the cool of the day with your Creator? How on earth could they have messed that up!?!? What could possibly have caused them to turn their backs on that wonderful relationship and opt for something else?
Well, the very same temptations that led Eve and Adam down that bumpy path lure us away from our Maker too. If you read the serpent's words in Genesis 3, you see that he was very clever in causing Eve to question God's rules (and God's motives for creating those rules in the first place). And isn't that what leads us into sin so often? We doubt the necessity of God's rules, or we question why He made them in the first place. We don't really believe that sin will ruin us, so we willfully walk into it, anticipating that the rewards will far outweigh the consequences. Oh, how badly we are mistaken.
God's word is truth. His laws are good - based on His deep, unending love for us and His desire to see our lives full and rich! But the serpent is cunning, and his desire is to draw us away from our true source of Life. He will make the things of this world look so good; he will tempt us by subtly twisting God's word to meet a different end. Sin will creep into our lives so slowly and steadily that we don't even see it as sin. . .
If we are going to recognize sin as sin; if we are going to find the strength and will to reject it and run after Jesus, we have to have the right perspective. We have to be in His word -reminding ourselves of His ways, His love, and His goodness. And sometimes, we have to take our eyes off the things of this world in order to see clearly.
I have pretty much stopped watching TV altogether. One thing I have learned in recent months is that watching TV numbs my senses. It is an avenue that the serpent uses to work his way into my heart, convincing me that sin isn't really that bad. If I watch it long enough, I start to lose my connection to Christ, and begin to live for the things of this world.
You want to know something crazy? I don't miss it. I'm not disconnected and separate from the world. . . I'm right here in it! But I'm not living for it, and I'm not nearly so tempted by it's fruit when I'm not soaking myself in it's lies night after night. Maybe TV isn't a vice for you. Maybe the serpent sneaks into your mind twisting your view of what it means to walk with God in a different way.
Today I want to challenge you to take a long, hard look at your life. Where are you at in your walk with God? Are you experiencing as much unhindered intimacy as you possibly can this side of heaven? Are you questioning his laws and ways because the temptations of this world just seem so darn appealing?
We always need the encouragement and love of our brothers and sisters in Christ. . . but sometimes we need a little kick in the bum, too. I love you all, and my heart's deepest desire and prayer is that you would leave the things of this world in the dust and run after the One who made you, saved you, and now offers you a life beyond what you could even imagine - if only you would truly live for Him. . .
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