Are you with me? Way, way back when the story of the Bible began, let us walk with Adam and Eve into the well-known disaster describing the birth of all destruction and devastation. Twisting the magnificence and glory in God’s promise of bounty and beauty, Satan sows doubt in Eve’s thinking and make her think she might be missing out on something. She eats of the fruit that would turn her into her own god and becomes the proud deity of her own destiny.

Eve gave Adam to eat; they saw their own nakedness and hid from God – as if it is possible to hide from the omni-present, all-knowing Father. That same day, not letting the sun go down on their devastation, God came and called in the wind: Adam where are you?

Do you really think He needed information about Adam’s whereabouts? Do you think the all-knowing, everywhere God did not know exactly where Adam and Eve were and precisely what happened in the garden that day? He knew off course! Still He came…. and called.

Sin did no end the conversation. No sin can ever end the conversation.

Today, this day, as through all the ages, His invitation rings true:

“Come. Sit down. Let’s argue this out.” This is God’s Message:

“If your sins are blood-red, they’ll be snow-white.

If they’re red like crimson, they’ll be like wool. (Isaiah 1:18, The Message)

What an amazing word! This is the answer to sin. Get it out of the way. Come back into His Presence. No detours, no guilt, no hiding from God. Come back, call out – forgiveness is guaranteed.

MOMENT OF PRAYER: Confess whatever you are hiding from God. If nothing comes to mind – ask the Holy Spirit to show you.

Where can I go from Your Spirit?

Or where can I flee from Your presence? 

If I ascend into heaven, You are there;

If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. (Psalm 139:7,8)

If God said it, it is life-giving and life-changing, powerful, miracle-working words. His words of forgiveness will lift you up and out of failure and hopelessness.

Why did God ask questions? Not to get information, but to get the exchange going. Adam had to talk it out, tell God why they are hiding, confess, explain and in spilling the secret, be healed and forgiven. Sin is so often a secret, unspeakable and shameful – so much that it holds you captive just by the sheer shame of it. Talking about it is rendering it powerless.

God has an answer, a miracle, for the biggest scandals you can think of. He will not allow satan to defeat you and your potential in this world. His plans are steadfast and sure.

We humans keep brainstorming options and plans, but God’s purpose prevails. (Proverbs 19:21, The Message)

Often, but not always, His first point of communication is our circumstances. He does not orchestrate it, but He uses the evil coming out of our wrong decisions for good. All the disaster in our world today is the consequences of sin and man’s wrong decisions. God judges sin continually in order to bring people to repentance. In any crisis of choosing right above wrong, discipline above easy, effort above letting slip, know that God is good, always, and will ALWAYS work our mess for our benefit.

What happens in the garden? God prevails – until His voice calls them out of hiding. He gets them to talk. The whole story is blurted out with blame and accusations. As always God’s judgment comes sound and clear, not to man – who will off course carry the consequence of sin, always with God by his side, but to satan, who will bear the ultimate defeat at the cross, when his head will be crushed.

God told the serpent:

“Because you’ve done this, you’re cursed, cursed beyond all cattle and wild animals,

Cursed to slink on your belly and eat dirt all your life.

I’m declaring war between you and the Woman, between your offspring and hers.

He’ll wound your head, you’ll wound his heel.” (Genesis 3:15)

 After this declaration of judgment, God did a very important thing.

He covered their nakedness His way. He killed an animal – I believe it was a lamb, but the Bible does not say – and clothed them with the symbolism of innocent blood flowing for the cleansing and covering of their sin. Their own efforts with fig leaves did not spare them the shame of their failure. Only God could cover them to live on the cursed earth, the brokenness that we still live in today.

PRINCIPLE for a life of excellence: we are covered by the blood of THE Lamb.

MOMENT OF PRAYER: Thank God for instant restoration and forgiveness to defeat sin and walk in victory.

By His blood the Garden is restored and we can walk with God in His Presence, entering into conversation with our Father as of old, before sin. Where He is, is peace and rest.

From this moment on, everything is focused on the conversation. Satan wants to break it off and God loves and forgives to restore it.