October 16, 2023

Genesis 3:1-7 (HCSB)
The Temptation and the Fall
3 Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the wild animals that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You can’t eat from any tree in the garden’?” 2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit from the trees in the garden. 3 But about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God said, ‘You must not eat it or touch it, or you will die.’” 4 “No! You will not die,” the serpent said to the woman. 5 “In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 Then the woman saw that the tree was good for food and delightful to look at, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.

Christine Greiner
Do you ever find yourself alone, hearing a voice that says “you can do that, there is no harm in it, it is a good thing that you enjoy!”? The serpent knew that Eve was alone in the garden. She did not have the counsel of Adam by her side. She had actually been pretty limited in what she had experienced so far in her life and was vulnerable to being persuaded. The serpent even took her closest relationship, her relationship with God, and twisted it to deceive her. How dare he! Just as Eve was caught off guard and deceived, we can be as well. We can quickly see something attractive and lose sight of the way God has called us to live. What may be deceiving you today? What distractions may be speaking into your life?