December 3 Fall of Man: Gen. 3:1-7 and 23-24

This is the post I wish I didn't have to write. Oh what the world would have been like if only evil didn't rear its ugly head. When reflecting on this part of the Jesse Tree, it struck me about how clever satan really is. Although he is the father of lies, he is so careful to use enough truth to make it seem like he's not lying. "Eat of the fruit, surely you won't die," he said. They eat the fruit, and sure enough, they are still alive with more knowledge than either of them ever really needed or wanted. They did not die physically, but spiritually, they died that day. God created beauty and love, joy and peace. Satan hates that. Ever since that first encounter with free-will and sin, satan has been infiltrating the love between two people every day. The very minute we choose our will over God's, we fail. Think about that for a minute. This doesn't mean that God is a puppeteer telling us what to do every single moment of our lives, but there are some non-negotiables. For example - God said to love one another as He loves us. When we put love of ourselves or of our "idols" ahead of love of one another, the relationship fails. Satan loves that. How many marriages and friendships have failed because of selfishness? How many times have we listened to the half-truths of satan only to realize too late that we took our eyes off God and ate again of the tree of good and evil? Every day we have a decision to make - Listen to God's commands and surrender ourselves to His will or listen to satan's half-truths and sometimes even blatant lies and surrender ourselves to our own will or worse yet, satan's will. God made us beautiful, satan convinces us we are ugly. God made us courageous and powerful (dominion over all creatures), satan makes us believe we are powerless and fearful. God gave us everything we need, satan makes us believe we need more. I don't really think satan is a serpent - I believe that's just a symbol, but I do believe he slithers into our lives just like a serpent. He coils himself around our hearts and minds and squeezes out rational thought and compassion. During this Advent season, I'm going to pray to regain my own personal Garden of Eden where God is the only thing that I have to be concerned about. Where peace settles in after a long day of toiling. Where I am thankful for all of the abundance God has given to me. Go away satan. You're not welcome here in my Garden.