Devotionals for August 29, 2023
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READ
Genesis 2:18-22
18 The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”
19 Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. 20 So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.
But for Adam no suitable helper was found. 21 So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. 22 Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.
Genesis 3:16-20
16 To the woman he said,
“I will make your pains in childbearing very severe;
with painful labor you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you.”
17 To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’
“Cursed is the ground because of you;
through painful toil you will eat food from it
all the days of your life.
18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.
19 By the sweat of your brow
you will eat your food
until you return to the ground,
since from it you were taken;
for dust you are
and to dust you will return.”
20 Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living.
18 The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”
19 Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. 20 So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.
But for Adam no suitable helper was found. 21 So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. 22 Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.
Genesis 3:16-20
16 To the woman he said,
“I will make your pains in childbearing very severe;
with painful labor you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you.”
17 To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’
“Cursed is the ground because of you;
through painful toil you will eat food from it
all the days of your life.
18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.
19 By the sweat of your brow
you will eat your food
until you return to the ground,
since from it you were taken;
for dust you are
and to dust you will return.”
20 Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living.
REFLECT
Marriage is… A Partnership
Today we look at the hardship Adam and Eve would face their entire lives. Only a relationship of a loving partnership would survive what was to come.
Consider what God did when He created Eve. She was formed from Adam’s rib. A symbolic action for sure. She was not formed from Adam’s head or his foot, but his side. The meaning that Eve was meant to be at his side, not above him or below him. Digging deeper, there is symbolism in the bone selection. The ribs protect all the vital organs of human beings. God formed her from a source of strength and importance. Something to chew on.
I believe Adam and Eve were highly intelligent and without guile, although the blame game in the Garden indicated they were learning quickly. They had to figure out everything on their own. Naming the animals by Adam was quite a feat, but now food, shelter, cooking, had to be figured out. There was no Google, no YouTube. Not even and encyclopedia in sight. They were THE source of all human knowledge at that point.
It’s been said that building a house can put a strain on a marriage because of all the decisions that have to be made and all the give, take, and compromise. Extrapolate that out to what Adam and Eve had to do. Adam recognized he couldn’t do it alone when he said “she would become the mother of all living things.”
Today we look at the hardship Adam and Eve would face their entire lives. Only a relationship of a loving partnership would survive what was to come.
Consider what God did when He created Eve. She was formed from Adam’s rib. A symbolic action for sure. She was not formed from Adam’s head or his foot, but his side. The meaning that Eve was meant to be at his side, not above him or below him. Digging deeper, there is symbolism in the bone selection. The ribs protect all the vital organs of human beings. God formed her from a source of strength and importance. Something to chew on.
I believe Adam and Eve were highly intelligent and without guile, although the blame game in the Garden indicated they were learning quickly. They had to figure out everything on their own. Naming the animals by Adam was quite a feat, but now food, shelter, cooking, had to be figured out. There was no Google, no YouTube. Not even and encyclopedia in sight. They were THE source of all human knowledge at that point.
It’s been said that building a house can put a strain on a marriage because of all the decisions that have to be made and all the give, take, and compromise. Extrapolate that out to what Adam and Eve had to do. Adam recognized he couldn’t do it alone when he said “she would become the mother of all living things.”
APPLY
Q: When God pronounced the judgement on Eve and said “your desire will be for your husband”, how would that be a bad thing for Eve?
Q: While partnership is how we describe a marriage relationship, what does that really mean between you and your spouse?
Q: How does your partnership reflect the love you have for each other and God? What do you tell others about your marriage, your spouse, and God?
Q: While partnership is how we describe a marriage relationship, what does that really mean between you and your spouse?
Q: How does your partnership reflect the love you have for each other and God? What do you tell others about your marriage, your spouse, and God?
SING
PRAY
"May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven."
Lord above, let our relationship overflow with your love and demonstrate your wisdom as we work together to fulfill your will and expand your kingdom.
Lord above, let our relationship overflow with your love and demonstrate your wisdom as we work together to fulfill your will and expand your kingdom.