Monday, November 4, 2013

November 5, 2013

"Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it." Genesis 3:1-6

Who do you think should have been the most thankful people in the history of mankind?

My answer would be Adam and Eve!

After all, they lived in Paradise!

But as you are painfully aware, they lost their attitude of gratitude. Understanding how it happened is crucial to understanding why you struggle with ingratitude. Even though history has changed, human nature has not!

Let me first make this basic statement - gratitude is the foundational attitude. Thankfulness is the result of believing truth and ingratitude results from being deceived by a lie. 

The lie Adam and Eve allowed to deceive them was the notion that contentment is "out there somewhere"!

Imagine being able to walk with God IN PERSON every day in a perfect place like Eden! What could be better than that? No one has ever been more blessed than these two!

Do you think the God Who created Adam and then gave him Eve when He realized Adam had a need for human companionship would have denied Adam anything else he desired?

Of course He would have!

So how did they buy into this lie?

Apparently, they lost sight of the truth that God was their source and their substance. They forgot they were blessed and believed for less.

Haven't you found that when you forget you are blessed you settle for less? That has been my experience and it seems to be the case for the First Couple.

Also, they allowed themselves to doubt the character of God when the serpent impugned His character. When they allowed themselves to doubt God they were prone to believe the lie.

Learn from Adam and Eve!

Doubting God leads to dissatisfaction and dissatisfaction breeds ingratitude and ingratitude opens you up to being deceived.

If you are a child of God you are blessed! Desire more of Him. Don't settle for less!