‘The Lord… took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to… keep it.’ Genesis 2:15 NKJV
The Bible says God put Adam into the garden ‘to work it and take care of it.’ (Genesis 2:15 NIV) So even when you have a great home environment, you’ve still got to ‘work it and take care of it’. Left unattended, the best garden in the world will eventually turn into a weed patch. Similarly, if you devote all your time and energy to your career and none to your marriage and family, your home life will become a trouble zone. The Hebrew word for keep is the same as our English word meaning ‘to guard’ or ‘protect’. Adam’s job was to guard and protect his home. ‘From what?’ you ask. ‘After all, didn’t he live in a perfect environment?’ Yes, but Satan was about to show up and wreak havoc! It’s been said that ‘the devil is in the details’. Look closely, and chances are you’ll see him at work in your family in certain areas of dysfunction and stress. As couples, we fuss and fight, convinced that the other person is the problem. And that’s what the devil wants us to think! He knows you’ll never solve the real problem when the person you’re fighting isn’t the real problem. You have a spiritual problem brought on by your selfish nature, which gives Satan an entry point into your home. Marriage was instituted by God. So when you see things from His viewpoint and start operating according to His rules, you’ll have the productive, purposeful and peaceful relationship He wants you to have.
SoulFood: 1 Jn 1:1–3:10, Mark 1:9–20, Ps 78:40–55, Prov 20:4–6
The Word for Today is authored by Bob and Debby Gass and published under licence from UCB International Copyright 2024
