A Simple Bite
“So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.” Genesis 3:6
The grass is always greener on the other side.
Expectations kill relationships.
Assuming makes mules of us all.
Things aren’t always what they seem.
We live in a world, generation, society that only thinks of them-self.
That last phrase seems like it’s only this generation, however I think it’s been around since the beginning of mankind. Actually all of those phrases can be true since Eve ate the forbidden fruit.
Eve took a bite of a fruit she was told not to. Big deal. It was just one bite. It was just a piece of fruit. Big deal.
Don’t we tend to justify things like that?
Other people do so much worse. I’m a better person than they are. I mean, fruit is good for you. And taking a bite doesn’t hurt anybody else.
SCREECHING STOP!
Look around you! Watch the news. Visit a hospital. In fact, have you gone to the emergency room lately? I have no idea why they call it an emergency room.
That innocent simple bite of fruit was the beginning. How many people did that supposedly simple bite hurt? How many people has that simple bite hurt throughout the years?
What really boggles my mind is the question a lot of people ask, how can a loving God allow such pain.
As a loving parent there needs to be rules for the children to be happy and safe. If those children break the rules they need to be disciplined or allowed to live with their decisions in order to learn and grow.
Here’s an example. A teenager is told by their parent and the law not to drink alcohol. The teenager goes to a party or friends house and is told one drink won’t hurt them. The teenager takes a drink and likes it and doesn’t feel any different. The teenager drinks another and another. This group of friends are friendly and they don’t cause trouble. In fact the drinking is the only thing they are doing that’s “wrong”. Nobody is getting hurt. They are just having a good time. Now it’s time to go home. The teenager, now intoxicated, proceeds to drive home. The others discuss among themselves if they should let the teen leave, but quickly dismiss as being sober enough to be ‘ok’ to drive home. After all they only had a “few” drinks. The teen proceeds to drive home and comes to a light that turns quickly red. Because the reflexes are slow they were not able to stop the car quick enough, and another car crosses the intersection…I don’t need to explain what happens here. But I will point out lives are changed, bad things happened and will haunt the teen and everyone involved throughout the life time and beyond. All this because of one simple decision to take a drink.
Does this mean the parents aren’t loving? If we don’t have rules and consequences two things can happen. We will have chaos or be prisoners. Neither is an outcome of a loving God.
The thing that our truly loving God does? He allows us to be us, gives us freedom to be us. All the while giving us a way to be His, forgiven and whole again. He gave His son for us so we can be with Him for eternity. He let us make the decision to disobey and gives us a way back by letting us have the decision to be accepted back. That has more love than any human can ever understand.
When I get down, feel left out, feel like others have it better. I can go to God in prayer, pick up His word and know I am His! I am forgiven. I am loved!
Our God Is a Loving God! He is a Holy God! He is an Awesome God!