Eve

Much has been said about the interaction between Eve, the first woman to walk upon the earth, and the serpent. Growing up there was always something intriguing and mysterious to me when I saw the imagery of this event in a children’s bible or some classical piece of art. Although I don’t necessarily have an issue with these simple representations, the more I read the account of this interaction the more I become aware of the mystery of wisdom contained within. In particular, on the topic of faith, what I find very intriguing is the connection between the kingdom of darkness as represented by the serpent and the human mind. There has been right from the beginning an assault on the human mind through deception and perhaps this is why the apostle Paul reminds us that true life transformation begins in our minds, and that the true battle we find as humans to be incessantly coming against us is the battle for a victorious belief system.

The Genesis three account helps me better understand the tension that I have often experienced in my life but have felt helpless to find freedom from. As I reflect on the things that I have sensed from God, often times not initially recognizing his voice, he has been faithful to encourage me to not doubt when I am perceiving his presence. He has been kind to allow me safety to get to know his voice and grow in confidence to be able to discern if what I am sensing is just coming from me, the general environment or from him. Please don’t misunderstand me; this is not a formula or I’ve “nailed it” type dynamic. It’s relationship and it’s nuanced and unique and I’m forever growing. However, as I have been growing I have also sensed the need to not just quietly treasure these things in my heart but to bring them out into the open; this might mean sharing with my husband and kids or family and friends and discussing. Bringing these things out into the open is not just about finding relief by dumping my impressions on others but a step towards action as God is constantly inviting us into a partnership relationship with him to bless the earth and all of creation. That means what He shares with us is not only meant to transform us on the inside but also bring transformation into every sphere of life. He has innovative thoughts and creative strategies to impact families, education, business, government, science and technology, the arts, etc. If only it were this uncomplicated: Sense him and share with others what we have sensed. But it’s not. Unfortunately, there is a clever strategy by the enemy of our souls to shut us right down and move us into a life of fear that produces perpetual doubt. Our beloved Eve encountered this within moments of her interaction with the serpent. In Genesis One we see God declaring his heart to create humans in his own image and in his likeness. Upon no other creature has God bestowed this great privilege and blessing. Male and female, equally blessed, equally empowered, equally loved. Of course uniquely and yet equally called world-changers.

By Genesis Three Adam and Eve have both seen and experienced Gods presence with them and are learning to walk as world-changers. I believe within the human heart is the need to feel significant, to have impact and to experience deep acceptance and approval. These are not superfluous soul-wants. These are vital human needs that God intends for us to experience. I feel I must insert here to you the reader that your dreams of playing an important role on the earth are not selfish and misconstrued. God put that in your heart and his intention is for you to know Him and his great Love for you, and for that Love to cause your faith to soar through creativity, innovation, endurance and courage.

Many theories have been espoused as to why the serpent approached Eve first. I don’t care much to delve into the far side of either male chauvinism or misguided female empowerment. I will only speak to the dynamic that I as a woman often find myself battling. This is a scenario I often have found myself caught in: I sense something that is potentially very true and important and I say it outloud. I then feel a deep sense of shame for saying it outloud and move into fear of ever speaking out again. After many years of this scenario on repeat I’m finding I can no longer blame others but perhaps recognize my own ignorance as to the strategy that is being stirred up against me to shut me down in life. Eve, when asked by the serpent if God actually said she couldn’t eat from any tree in the Garden, knows what God said and recounts God’s instruction to her and Adam accurately. The passage doesn’t tell us what is going on in her thought life and resulting emotions, but I suspect the serpent didn’t ask the question because he didn’t already know the answer. He asked her because when she confessed outloud what God had said he was going to slam her with an overwhelming sense of shame and convince her to not only doubt what she had perceived God had said but move her into a life of fear which would produce in her perpetual doubt. What was the fear that Eve felt in that moment? Let’s look again at the lie the serpent tells her: “But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Here is what I believe was happening in that moment. She began to fear that she was actually not as close with God as she thought she was, she feared that there was good for her that was being withheld through God’s perceived deception, and that ultimately she must have been flawed in some way and her flawed self hindered her from experiencing the fullness of life she believed she was created for. Shame over her identity welcomed the fear of disconnection and she began to doubt everything she had known up until that point. Desperately wanting to remedy the pain of the shame she was experiencing in that moment she looked to the tree which had previously been off-limits for relief from the intense sorrow she was experiencing as a result of believing that God was not close to her and that she was wrong. Not that she had done something wrong, but that her very identity as a woman made in the image of God was wrong. Her identity was a flawed identity. This is how the kingdom of darkness works so deceivingly in our lives: create internal confusion through deception to the point of intense internal pain and then present every alternative apart from God to remedy that pain. Brene Brown so aptly describes shame as the following: “I define shame as the intensely painful feeling or experience of believing that we are flawed and therefore unworthy of love and belonging – something we’ve experienced, done or failed to do makes us unworthy of connection. I don’t believe shame is helpful or productive. In fact, I think shame is much more likely to be the source of destructive, hurtful behavior than the solution or cure. I think the fear of disconnection can make us dangerous”.( https://brenebrown.com/articles/2013/01/15/shame-v-guilt/)

The truth is she had nothing to feel shame over. She was created to be a world-changer – uniquely fashioned, beautifully empowered and highly favoured. God wasn’t far from her and he hadn’t changed his mind on who she was created to be. But now she takes the alternative to God, her life-source, because of the pain she’s experiencing on the inside, and all of the sudden the relief that was told would be released inside of her by choosing an alternative became even more painful and her eyes were opened. She realized that it didn’t make the pain go away. Now she actually had done something wrong which would hinder her being able to experience the closeness to God that she was created for. Guilt set in and she and Adam hid from God. She perceived she was already in disconnection from God before she ate of the fruit, but when she actually ate of the fruit she experienced true disconnection. Not only do her and Adam move into a life of perpetual disconnection from God (along with every human born after them), but the internal pain caused by the accepted fear over their flawed identity remained and relief was needed to mitigate the pain of believing that lie. That need for relief from the pain became the invitation for unholy anger, bitterness, jealousy and every vile human emotion that seeks to blame others for the intense pain we feel inside.

The only one Who could heal the inside of her and remind her of her True Identity was now framed as untrustworthy. Even though she should have run to God and confessed to him how afraid she was that he was far away and that she had believed the lie that her identity made her unworthy of his goodness, she took matters into her own hands. I believe God would have been there in a heartbeat to heal her internal pain and restore her to himself, but she believed she was unworthy of connection so her only option was to run as far away from him as possible.

And the question from God to each of us, as it was to Eve in the garden, is who told you that you were shameful and unworthy? Where did you first learn that you were flawed and inadequate? Who told you that your body was made wrong and that you don’t measure up? God wants to heal that memory in your life and build in your mind a strong and dependable foundation of belief. God wants to tell you who you REALLY are, not who you think you are because of the pain you have experienced. You may be uncertain about what your true identity is, and what living out that identity looks like, but Jesus is here saying “come to me” and I will give you rest. Have you ever noticed how a person at rest isn’t easily aggravated or stirred into fear and doubt? There’s a confidence and unexplainable peace deep inside a person who knows they are deeply loved and that their life is fashioned for a unique and unrepeatable purpose. God wants to move us back to those places, reclaim those places where we moved freely before fear was accepted. This is the victory which has overcome the world. Our faith. Not just any faith. But specifically faith in Who God says we are. This life of faith only works through love and I believe that God is moving in these days to bring about much needed inner healing and restore us to a place of knowing experientially his great love for us and who He says we are so that we can walk again in godly confidence and faith.