Eve, The First (Not Last) Mistake

Genesis 2:20b-23
But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the Lord God caused Adam 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. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib He had taken out of the man, and He brought her to the man. The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman’ for she was taken out of man.”


“Ahhhh. Another cheery, sunny morning. I wonder what God and Adam are talking about right now. The air tastes wonderful. God really has created such an amazing place for us. I need to go tell God this moment just how grateful I am.”
Eve thought all of this within the first minute of waking up. Now as she ran to find God and Adam she shouted out of pure joy. She felt no pain. She had no concept of what pain or fear or death were, none of those things existed for her. She reached God and threw her arms around Him. She looked up at Him like a young child who just saw her dad again after he had been away and she gave Him the most brilliant smile there ever could be.
“Thank You sooo much!” she proclaimed. At that point she laughed with pure joy. She gave God a humongous hug and grabbed His hand and the three were off for another stroll in Eden. They laughed and talked all day stopping when they were hungry to grab a fruit off one of the many trees and bushes surrounding them. During the afternoon they ran through a meadow. Enjoying the feel of their bodies working together in a perfect symphony of movement. In the evening the rested in the shade of the forest where they had been walking that morning. As the sun set, they sat in silence watching the dazzling array of colors echoing off the clouds. Once the sun went down God, Adam and Eve gazed at the starry sky until finally Adam and Eve drifted to sleep completely comfortable where ever their heads came to rest.
Day after day came and went. They did not feel the passage of time. They took pleasure in every moment as it came. Neither the future nor the past was an issue. Adam and Eve had no worries about what they would eat or wear or what condition their home was in. God had created for them a place of perfection and He created them perfectly, male and female. They lived in a timeless place with a timeless, wonderful God. God made them to love Him and He loved them. His crowning creation, made in His image.
But God did not want puppets on a string, who followed Him simply because they had no other option. God gave them free will and when Satan made his way to Eve that fateful day God was watching every moment. He watched His beauty, His portrait turn away from Him and distrust Him. He watched her make her decision and when the time came He dealt the punishment that was due. He has given us a second chance by dying on that cross about 2,000 years ago. I can’t even imagine and I don’t want to imagine all of the pain we’ve put Him through. I think about all of the things we get upset about and make fights about and stand up for or against. Why do we push God to the back burner? Why do we hesitate when we have the opportunity to about Him who has done so much for us?