A Lot Like Eve

Posted by Lorren on January 5, 2009

I’m trying to keep up with my Bible reading for the year. Today’s readings should get me through Genesis 12 and Matthew 4 (I’m reading for January 4th, before I go to bed).

Did you ever stop to think about how much we are like Eve? I never thought about it before today.

Eve had anything that she could have wanted. They didn’t know about fancy cars, cash, or video games, so they didn’t want any of that. They had all the food they could want and wouldn’t overeat and get fat, they were never cold, they didn’t have to pay any bills. There were no dangerous animals and the land was perfect.

But what did Eve end up dwelling on? When the serpent talked to her, he reminded her of the one thing that she didn’t have… permission to eat of the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Are we a lot like that sometimes?

We do this all the time. We have a decent car, but our friend gets a new one and suddenly we want to have one too. Somebody we know goes to Europe on vacation and has a fabulous time, and we want to go on vacation too. That’s one of the reasons why advertising works so well. You see something on television or in print that someone else has, and suddenly you want it too.

I have to admit… since the recession started, it’s been a little easier to get by in some ways. Somehow, it’s okay to say you can’t afford something. Other people can’t either! In good times, when people are prosperous and are always being blessed financially, sometimes we can feel a little like Eve.

I guess that’s something I can work on in the New Year. Focusing on the good things I have, rather than the good things I don’t have.