Wednesday, March 10, 2010

They Got What They Wanted, But They Lost What They Had



Do you ever think much about what it must have been like in the Garden of Eden for Adam and Eve? Roses without thorns. No weeds growing anywhere. Lions and tigers that could be petted like your kitten. No awful stinging red wasps. No pain in their joints when they woke up in the mornings. No gray hair or wrinkles. Beautiful, lush vegetation growing in perfect landscaping. Just absolute perfectness twenty-four hours a day! My but they must have loved living there!

Only ONE restriction did God put on them: Genesis 2: 16-17 "And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." God had already said earlier in chapter 2 verse 9 that every tree that was in the garden was either "pleasant to the sight" or "good for food". It was literally paradise on earth!

But ...God gave them a choice of whether they would choose His way or their own way. He wanted to have His creation love Him of their own free will and not just be little robots He could wind up and play with. We all know what is recorded in Genesis 3....Satan in the form of a serpent tempted Eve, Eve tempted Adam and they both chose to listen to Satan instead of God. Then verse 7 says: "And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked:" They immediately felt the change. Immediately they knew they had done wrong. They had gotten to taste of that one fruit God had forbidden them to eat....but now they could no longer stay in the perfect garden and even look at the beautiful things anymore. They got what they wanted, but they lost what they had! Now they would have to deal with thorns, thistles, pain, sickness, and even death. "So He drove out the man; and He placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life." Genesis 3: 24 Never would they see the Garden of Eden again.

Do you think we learned our lesson from reading about Adam and Eve? No! We are just like them. God shows us the best He has for us. He shows us what is bad for us. Then He leaves the choice to us. He still doesn't want little robots.....He desires real live flesh and blood children who choose to love Him and live for Him. But we are still prone to listen to the lies of Satan and choose the things that are bad for us. Lord, help us to listen to You and Your Truth!

There are so many "forbidden fruits" that Satan still holds out to us today! With most of them we face the possibility of losing the good things we already have if we give in to temptations. Many a person has lost his/her family because they were unfaithful to their spouse. Some have lost their homes or businesses because they wanted to see what all the excitement was about gambling and it just went too far. The person who wanted someone dead so badly that they just killed them now sits in a jail cell for the rest of their life. Re-hab centers are full of people who wanted to just "try" alcohol or drugs and found that they were one of the ones who became an addict. Yes, they got what they wanted....but they lost what they had! I could go on and on. We just have to be on guard. We have to get as close to God as we possibly can so that our everyday choices will not become regrets!

May God help us all to make right choices today!

Marilyn


(This post is also running today @ http://kjvblogs.blogspot.com/2010/03/wednesday-in-word-they-got-what-they.html )

14 comments:

Yolanda said...

Marilyn,

you did a beautiful job here and full of truths. I've been there and am thankful that today I am choosing God's way. For it leads to life. I fall short, oh yes Ma'am, I surely do, but I find myself quick to feel the prick and get back on track.

Love to you,
Yolanda

Mari said...

What an insightful post. Thank you so much for sharing it. Yes, my prayer is that I have NO regrets, but stay content to be in God's will for me, and not wander outside of that.

Peggy said...

Yes indeed! And it does require being close to the Lord through prayer and Bible reading and keeping our thought life pure.
Meditating on the Lord, sounds old- fashioned to the world, but it still works! I appreciate you and the time you give to help and encourage others.

Your friend,
Peggy

Anonymous said...

Marilyn, so good as always. Thanks.

Love you,

Ouida

LisaShaw said...

Hi Marilyn, I pray you are well and thank you for sharing such a powerful and necessary message!

God bless you dear sister in Christ.

Sue said...

Hi Marilyn,
What an awesome post you have posted, Oh! so true.
Thank you for sharing , how blessed I am.
Blessings,
Sue

HOPE said...

Amen Marilyn...thank you for stopping by...I've actually been meaning to visit your blog and then there you were..visiting me.

Great post!

Blessings to you..
HOPE

Michele {The Scrap Shoppe} said...

Hi, Marilyn! I'm stopping by from New Friend Friday at The Girl Creative. This post was so insightful! Thank you so much for sharing it.

-Michele

Kristy said...

Here to follow you from Friday Follow and New Friend Friday! Would love to have you stop by my new blog, Lemonade Mommy!

Kristy

http://www.lemonademommy.com

Leanne said...

What a beautiful message. Thanks for sharing it. We all need to be reminded to focus on what's really important and keep God in our life. Thanks for visiting my blog.

elaine @ peace for the journey said...

Getting what we want... losing what we have. Have many times have I forsaken the treasure of God's goodness for selfish sin?! You don't want to know. Thankfully, I walk in truth now and am better about realizing the difference between the two. I don't ever want to forsake God's gain for my own.

peace~elaine

Deborah Ann said...

Wow, so many times I read those Bible stories and say "Thank God I'm not like that!" But I am...and it's only by the grace of God that He reaches out His hand to pull me in...

mariel said...

"They got what they wanted, but they lost what they had!" What an often scary truth!! I can beg and beg the Lord for something and get what I "want" but then lose the what I had!! Reminds me of the Israelites when they got Saul as king...they got the king like they wanted but lost the leadership of God as their king.

Oh, Father, let me not want what I want MORE than I want YOU!

Thank you for sharing this truth, Marilyn!

Joyful said...

Getting what I want...losing what I had...finding out that what I had is all I ever really wanted.

Wonderful post Marilyn. Really speaking to my heart.
Love ya,
Joy