Upon reading my "Bad Girls of the Bible" book the other day, I stumbled upon a most beautiful little encouragement. This is coming from Eve's chapter...the original bad girl ;)

I'm going to start my note with Genesis 2:15 "The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it."

Eden is often translated as "delight" or, by way of a Persian word, "paradise". This was no ordinary garden people. It was a carefully designed and beautifully executed park of wonderful trees and beautiful flowers, everything we could ever imagine I'm sure, and then some. Such gardens don't maintain themselves; that was Adam's job. Even before the Fall, he was given the task of caring for the garden. It was a cushy gig though, far from hard labor. There weren't any weeds, mosquitos, thorns or grub worms. Adam had everything he needed to be happy in this garden of his; food, water, warmth and shelter. It engaged his senses with all its colors, fragrances, and textures. Not to mention, the sway of the trees and sound of flowing streams were music to his ears. Sounds like Heaven to me!

After giving Adam the one commandment he was not to break, say it with me everybody..."Don't eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil". Like any good parent, our heavenly father built a hedge of protection around his child to keep his innocence and to keep him from things he just didn't need to know. And of course Adam was obedient, but he was lonely. Leading to my main point...

The Lord says, "it is not suitable for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him." Genesis 2:18

Was this announcement to give Adam a helper to keep his mind off the forbidden fruit? To help with gardening? Or was it in response to Adam's very human longing for companionship? One commentator (myself included) voted for the last option:"Solitude is not good; man was created for sociability." Even those of us who enjoy our quiet moments begin to get stir crazy. It's a God given drive to connect with other people (hence the popularity of facebook!). Those with very little of that drive are labeled "loners", people with even less are called "hermits" and those with none are put in straightjackets. People need people.

"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 closed up the place with flesh" Genesis 2:21

And here goes the purpose of my entire story :) ...

Why the rib??

Maybe because the rib isn't exactly a load bearing wall. But I choose to go with the second opinion of the two and completely agree when the author says, "...God wisely chose the bone nearest to the man's heart as a gentle reminder to keep his helpmate close by his side-physically, emotionally, spiritually."

Uh! Steal my heart, what a wonderful way to look at it! When I read that one sentence, it sent my heart a flutter. I love it and just wanted to share. Enjoy!

A Special Kind of Hatred

Hello all! Today I would like to touch on an interesting subject regarding a special kind of hatred. Ladies...unfortunately, this one's for you. But take heart Daughter's of Eve, trust me and just keep reading.

This is an exerpt from one of my favorite books, "Captivating".

"Turn your attention to the events that took place in the Garden of Eden. Notice- who does the evil one go after? Who does satan single out for his move against the human race? He could have chosen Adam...but he didn't. Satan went after Eve. He set his sights on her. Have you ever wondered why? It might have been that he, like any predator, chose what he believed to be the weaker of the two. There is some truth to that. He is utterly ruthless. But we believe there is more. Why does satan make Eve the focus of his assault on humanity?

You may know that satan was first named Lucifer, or Son of the Morning. It infers a glory, a brightness or radiance unique to him. In the days of his former glory he was appointed a guardian angel. Many believe he was the captain of the angel armies of God. The guardian of the glory of the Lord.

You were the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the Garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz, and emerald, chrysolite, onyx and jasper, sapphire, turquoise and beryl. Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared. You were annointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones. (Ezek. 28:12-14)

Perfect in beauty. That is the key. Lucifer was gorgeous. He was breathtaking. And it was his ruin. Pride entered Lucifer's heart. The angel came to believe he was being cheated somehow. He craved the worship that was being given to God for himself. He wanted the attention and adoration for himself. ("Mirror, mirror, on the wall...")

Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor. (Ezek. 28:17)

Satan fell because of his beauty. Now his heart for revenge is to assault beauty. He reaks destruction on the glory of God in the earth like a psychopath committed to destroying great works of art.

But most especially, he hates Eve. Because she is captivating, uniquely glorious, and he cannot be. She is the incarnation of the Beauty of God. More than anything else in all creation, she embodies the glory of God. She allures the world to God. He hates it with a jealousy we can only imagine.

And there is more. The evil one also hates Eve because she gives life. Eve means "life" or "life producer." Women give and nourish life. Satan was a murderer from the beginning, he brings death. His is a kingdom of death. Ritual sacrifices, genocide, the Holocaust-those are his ideas. And thus, Eve is his greatest human threat, for she brings life.

Put those two things together- that Eve incarnates the beauty of God and she gives life to the world. Satan's bitter heart cannot bear it. He assaults her with a special hatred. History removes any doubt of this. Do you begin to see it?

Think of the great stories- in nearly all of them, the villain goes after the hero's true love.

This explains an awful lot. It is not meant to scare you. Actually, it will shed so much light on your life's story, if you let it. Most of you thought the things that have happened to you were somehow your fault- that you deserved it. If only you had been prettier or smarter or done more or pleased them. somehow it wouldn't have happened. You would have been loved. They wouldn't have hurt you.

And most of you are living with the guilt that somehow it's your fault you aren't more deeply pursued now. That you have no beauty to unveil. The message of our wounds nearly always is. "This is because of you, this is what you deserve." It changes things to realize that, no, it is because you are a major threat to the kingdom of darkness. Because you uniquely carry the glory of God to the world.

You are hated because of your beauty and power."

(Eldridge, 83, 84 & 85)

All I have to say is wow. If that doesn't open your eyes to a new truth, I don't know what does. I am so thankful this was revealed to me and find it incredibly fascinating. Not only that but it answers so many questions that have been lingering in my heart for so long.

Incredible.