Today’s Reading: Genesis 2-3, Psalm 16

GOD RESTED

On the seventh day God had finished his work of creation, so he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because it was the day when he rested from all his work of creation. – Genesis 2:2-3

I love Sundays! It is a wonderful day to rest from work and allow God to restore me for His purposes. I find it helpful to pull away from the stress and get re-centered. It is a great opportunity to look back on where God has brought me from and rest in the knowledge that He has been extremely good to me. Reading through the story of creation is a great reminder of the importance of sabbatical moments. What a gift God gives us when He calls us to be intentional with how we end each week.

With the need to rest, comes the need to sleep. Consider the gift of sleep and how God provides for us while we are laying still. It was while Adam was sleeping that God provided a companion for him. It is in our moments of stillness and rest that God often communicates with us, giving us clarity of thought and restoring us for what lies ahead.

GOD PROVIDED

God provided companionship for Adam and gave him a beautiful place to live — a place where God Himself would walk. God called man to reign over all He had created and to watch over it, but He told him not to eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Satan desired to take all that God had provided and convince Eve that it was not enough, and that is exactly what he did.

The serpent convinced Eve that she needed what God had not provided, that she deserved more. Eve had the opportunity to rest in God’s provision and follow His instructions, yet she chose to find beauty in what she could not have. Adam and Eve learned the lesson that there is no lasting joy in stepping away from God’s plan and they suffered the consequences of their sin.

GOD CONFRONTED

Then the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” – Genesis 3:9

In this moment, God was not asking for their physical location. He knew the exact place Adam and Eve were hiding. Perhaps God was asking them where they were spiritually. Now that they had failed to obey, now that they had sinned, Adam and Eve needed to figure out where they were with God.

Then the Lord God asked the woman, “What have you done?” – Genesis 3:13a

GOD PUNISHED

Sin — to know what you ought to do but choose not to do it. Sin — to choose to do what God has made clear you are not allowed to do. One of the first lessons we can learn from the Bible is that God is a holy God who punishes us when we disobey. He has a beautiful life planned for us and we miss out on that plan when we willfully choose to follow our own sinful desires instead of walking in companionship with Him.

Father God, we thank you for making your plan for our life clear to us. Thank you for calling us to walk with you, following the instructions you have clearly laid out for us in your word. We thank you for your provision and for your restoration as we make it a priority to spend time each day in your presence. May our focus remain on you as we find beauty in what you have for us.

I will bless the Lord who guides me; even at night my heart instructs me. I know the Lord is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me. No wonder my heart is glad, and I rejoice. My body rests in safety. For you will not leave my soul among the dead or allow your holy one to rot in the grave. You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever. – Psalm 16:7-11