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Eden Day 5 Crafted For Community

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Genesis 1:26-31
1 John 4:7-21
Romans 5:1-11
Matthew 22:37-40

Eden, Day 5

I think the Garden of Eden must have been paradise for those who are averse to crowds. Since Adam and Eve were the only humans on the planet, I cannot quite picture one of them mumbling, “I hate crowds.” Unless, by chance, a cacophony caused by all the animals Adam had recently named counted for crowd noise.

No large groups of people rushed to and fro on their way to the market or gathered close to hear someone speak as Adam and Even walked with the Lord in the cool of the day. (Genesis 3:8) But, in those evening times of sharing, five distinct persons were present, three of whom are found within the single triune Being of the three-in-one God.

Deuteronomy 6:4 clearly states there is only One God.
“The LORD our God, the LORD is one.”

This truth is reiterated across Scripture, but we also discover this One God is revealed in three distinct persons as God the Father, God the Son (Jesus), and God the Holy Spirit. All three persons dwell in unity as the Lord God; all three were present in Eden.

I can only imagine the community Adam and Eve shared with God in the Garden.
Abundant peace! Flooding Love! All shared so beautifully!
How glorious it surely was to interact with the Lord before sin marred everything!

There are four Greek words for love: eros, storge, philos, and agape.
Eros is sexual and romantic.
Storge is felt for family.
Philos is shared between friends.
Agape is Divine love poured out through self-sacrifice.

The Triune God is Lord of love, it is His DNA, and He created us to both give and receive it, mirroring how He shares self-sacrificial love even within His own Being.

“Dear friends, let us love one another, because love is from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.” (1 John 4:7)

“God is love, and the one who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him [. . .] We love because He first loved us.” (1 John 4:16, 19)

Adam and Eve were the first humans to experience love and, to borrow the wording of Genesis, they saw that love was good.

Adam and Eve were the first husband and wife.
Eros

Scripture lists their children as Cain, Abel, Seth, and other sons and daughters.
Storge

The Lord walked with Adam and Eve in the Garden and talked with them directly.
Philos

Finally, Adam and Eve were removed from the Garden due to their sin. (Genesis 3)
They lost their direct access to the Lord.

However, out of His love, the Lord did not destroy them, even at the expense of His connection with them and the eventual sacrifice Jesus would make to restore our access.
Agape

Regardless of the type of love demonstrated, one common denominator is present: more than one person. This means that when the Lord decided to make man in His image, humanity was crafted for community.

“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness.’” (Genesis 1:26, emphasis mine)
The Trinity is on display within the first chapter of Genesis!

God as Father, Son, and Spirit dwell in perfect community, and we are invited and challenged to foster healthy community as well with divine agape love as our foundation.

A common cultural mantra is “Love Wins.”
Yes, yes it does.
But not according to the world’s definition of “winning”.
It’s not the selfish love of one having her every whim satisfied, but a love reflecting Matthew 22: 37-40.

“He said to [the Pharisee], ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and most important command. The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and Prophets depend on these two commands.’”

Every interaction we have with another person is a chance to grow in agape love as it undergirds every other type of love and reflects the beautiful, sacrificial love of the Triune God.

Before finding ourselves incredibly overwhelmed at trying to muster up this kind of love on our own strength, remember this love is a fruit of the Spirit. (Galatians 5:22-23) We are to love with and through the help of the Holy Spirit.

In order to effectively love others in community,
we must first be in community with the Lord.

Lord, we need more of You. We need Your ability to love those around us.
Holy Spirit, please cultivate agape love in us. Empower us to love like You
when it hurts,
when it’s scary,
when we’re tired,
when we’ve been wounded,
and when differences threaten to divide us by prejudice.

**Please note we do not advocate remaining in unsafe, abusive relationships. Setting healthy boundaries is also a demonstration of love.

Lord, we will continually fail without Your help; we need Your help when we inevitably fall short. Help us to love enough to ask for forgiveness, pour out grace, listen to understand, extend forgiveness, and to seek Your face for wisdom in our relationships. 

You crafted us for community.
Helps us to experience this by drawing close to You and loving our neighbors as ourselves. 

For Your Glory.
Amen. 

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Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Eden Week One! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!
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Pause V Day 1 Beginning

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Pause Five, Day 1

Beginnings can be a double-edged sword.
There is the excitement of starting something new and fear of the unknown.

When we think of the Bible and beginnings, it brings to mind Genesis and the creation story. It began so well, but took a tragic turn after Eve and Adam ate the forbidden fruit.
See the double-edged sword?

But there is one beginning that’s so spectacular and glorious,
everything except awe and wonder fall away.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1)

John’s opening lines harken back to Genesis 1:1,
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”.

The Divine Word, Jesus, who was with God and was God, came to earth and walked among us. I get goosebumps thinking about the Creator of everything, stepping down from heaven to intimately engage with His creation.

Ponder that reality for a few moments.

So we wouldn’t miss Him, the Word sent a messenger to herald His imminent arrival. And the beautiful part? The messenger, John the Baptist, was himself a miracle from God. His mother was barren and both parents were well past the age for childbirth (Luke 1:7)
But The Word (God Almighty) had always been in charge and this was no exception.
No need for apprehension because the unknown was eliminated.
How was The Word described?

The Word was also our light. And He still is.

 Look at the chaos of the world.  The darkness has left the corners and shadows and walks freely and boldly among us. We desperately need light – this light, this Jesus.

Pause your words to read about The Word. How much do you need Him to make Himself, His light, more known to you?  You will know when you read only His words.

Grab your Bible, a journal and pen,
and open your heart to bask in the presence of the Almighty!

Today's Challenge

1) Read John 1:1-18, then circle back and re-read verses 9-13 a few times through.
Answer these 3 questions in your journal from verses 9-13:
            a) What do these verses tell me about God and His character?
            b) What do these verses tell me about others and the world around me?
            c) What do these verses tell me about me and my heart?

2) Close your time by praying for these truths to take root in your heart and for the Holy Spirit to remind you and teach you more about these things today. Be sure to write out any questions you have as you read! If you’d like to send your questions to us, we’d love to study with you!

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John 1:1-18

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 All things were created through Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created that has been created. 4 In Him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5 That light shines in the darkness, and yet the darkness did not overcome it.

6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify about the light, so that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but he came to testify about the light. 9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.

10 He was in the world, and the world was created through Him, and yet the world did not recognize Him. 11 He came to His own, and His own people did not receive Him. 12 But to all who did receive Him, he gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in His name, 13 who were born, not of natural descent, or of the will of the flesh, or of the will of man, but of God.

14 The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.
We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father,
full of grace and truth.

15 (John testified concerning Him and exclaimed, “This was the one of whom I said, ‘The one coming after me ranks ahead of me, because he existed before me.’”) 16 Indeed, we have all received grace upon grace from His fullness, 17 for the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God. The one and only Son, who is Himself God and is at the Father’s side—He has revealed Him.

How Does “Pause” Work?
1. Each day, Monday through Friday, for 3 weeks, we will provide you with a simple challenge. Each challenge is designed for you to engage with the Almighty in a deeper way and perhaps in a new way than you have been recently.

2. Having a journal is a must! You’ll want to take notes as you walk this special Journey of Pause.

3. Each week focuses on one or two passage of Scripture and we walk with you as you study and flesh these out for yourself. As you write your thoughts, read His Word, and pray, questions might come up. That’s Perfect! Ask a trusted fellow believer, a pastor, or send us an email as you work through them!

4. Jumping in at the middle? No problem! Here is the entire Journey Theme.

5. Connect with others on Facebook by visiting our GT Community Group!

Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Pause Five Week One!
Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

Looking for other journeys from this theme? Here’s a link to all past studies
in Pause Five!

Glimmers Day 1 Hope In The Darkness

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Read His Words Before Ours!

John 1:1-5
John 1:12-18
Genesis 3:1-6
Hosea 6:4-7

Glimmers, Day 1

My five year old looked up from the Jesus Storybook Bible he held on his lap. His brow was furrowed and his eyes were a little teary.

“Mama, I don’t understand. If God knows everything and He is always good, then why did He let Eve and Adam sin in the Garden of Eden? If He really loved us, why didn’t He just make that not happen? He could have done it. I KNOW He could have. So why didn’t He just do that?”

I pulled him on to my lap and hugged him. “It’s hard to make good choices, isn’t it?” I asked.

“Yes,” he huffed. He was just coming out of a time out, and his thoughts were centered around a poor choice he had made a little while earlier. No doubt, he was thinking about how much easier life would be without the opportunity to make a bad choice.

I can totally relate to how he felt. And maybe you can, too?

Sometimes, after I’ve said a harsh word or entertained a negative thought, I wish my own fleshly feelings could be cancelled out completely. I mean, how much easier would this life be without any opportunity to do or say the wrong thing? I think I could win that game. Right? How about you? Do you find yourself frustrated when you haven’t made the choice the Lord would have you make?

The kind choice.
The honest choice.
The forgiving choice.
The loving choice.

If we’re being honest? I think we can all agree that this refining fire of the Holy Spirit-filled life stuff is exhilarating and so necessary. We need His constant teaching to shape our hearts as He trains us to turn from sin. At the same time, it doesn’t always feel good. In fact…(and maybe I’m speaking only for me here) often it is painful. As He works and refines us, it’s easy for us to subscribe to the feeling that our sin has hooked us so deep, we will never be able to separate ourselves from it.

But Loves? That’s because we can’t.
No matter how hard or long or mightily we try, we will never be able to remove our own sin.

When we find ourselves feeling trapped under the weight of a sin we can’t seem to escape, or fighting despair as we stand at the altar, wondering how we are in the same place, again, or feeling hopeless in the face of our frail humanity, we must remember Whose responsibility it is to save us from our sins… and turn toward Him.

That sovereign, weighty duty belongs only to Jesus.
He paid a hefty price, and for us to attempt to shoulder the weight of our salvation on our own shoulders is both foolish and wrong.

What my five year old didn’t fully grasp (and many of us may sometimes forget) is that Jesus was always ever “the Plan.” God wasn’t surprised by Adam and Eve’s sin as they chose to live by their rules instead of God’s design. He knew it would happen. And while His heart undoubtedly broke (and continues to break) at that separation, He also wrote glimmers of hope into His story.

I mean, if any of us could have ever walked without sinning, it would have been that first son, Adam, and his Eve, right? They had no outside influences. No violent television shows or easy access to pornography. They didn’t have broken families or spend time with other broken people who might portray broken lives for them.

And yet, they fell.
Just as we fall.

God knew, all along, that the only One who would ever walk this earth without falling would be He, Himself.

Emmanuel, God with us.

God the Son, come down to His people in the form of the weakest of beings: a baby, wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. He was the powerful King Who had been foretold from generation to generation, but He was not the King anyone expected.
He was Jesus: perfect love and our everlasting Hope.

Loves? God never expected us to save ourselves.
He never expected we could live a sinless, perfect life, but He longs for us to choose Him above all else! His passion for us runs deeper than any we can imagine. Read His words about you in the book of Hosea if you have any doubt, and know that the God of the universe feels those things for you and me, His Bride!

From the beginning of His story until now, the fall of Eve and Adam has always pointed straight to the eternal hope we find in Christ Jesus, the sinless Son of God Who gave Himself to pay for our sins and secure our eternal citizenship in Heaven!
Grab hold of this hope and share it today, Sisters!

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Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Glimmers Week One! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Glimmers!