At It Again - Devotionals from MY Bible - Day 1

  

Genesis 1:1 - In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Genesis 1:31 - God saw all that he had made and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning - the sixth day.

Genesis 2:18 - The Lord God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him."

Genesis 2:21-22 - 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. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of man, and he brought her to the man.

Genesis 2:24 - For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.


     So, in rereading the verses for today, I've decided they are rather simple, yet very complex.  I'd like to break down today's study by verse groupings.

     Genesis 1:1 - Simple enough.  God created the heavens and the earth.  But what did that entail?  Think about all the things we know today.  All the continents, all the oceans, all the rivers, all the lakes, all the dialects, everything.  I like this verse because it sums up most of Genesis chapter 1...He created it ALL.
     There are those who would argue that the Big Bang Theory is how it all went down.  To them I ask, "Where did all the dust particulates come from to cause the Big Bang?"  To which they've always replied, "They were always there."  Well, to them I say, "God was always there!"

      I love the imagery given in the Good Book of heaven...yeah, the streets of gold and mansions untold, etc. But that's not really real to someone who grew up poor.  My vision of heaven is a bit more simple and realistic for a country girl.  When the big thunderheads roll across the plains with black clouds gathered below, you know you're in for a storm. But atop the black (figuratively speaking, it could be compared to earth), there are typically brilliant white golden cumulus (puffy) clouds. And when the sun hits them just right, there brilliance is SO overpowering that it hurts to look upon them, but when you do, there is now shadow in the heavens where the light touches.  That is how I see heaven and think about being in God's glory...it will be so brilliant, so overpowering, we will not be able to grasp the wholeness or the full beauty of it.
     So, while the verse is very simple, think about how complex the act truly is.

     Genesis 1:31 - Again, simple. So He saw what He did. He thought it was very good.  And, oh yeah, there was morning and evening on day 6.  He saw what He did...Wow!  He just created everything as we know it today with extras!!!!  Dinosaurs, birds, fish, lions, tigers, bears, Oh my!  Yes, on day 6 He has even created Adam, the first human to live in such a lush richness of compliance and in total open relationship to God.  He saw all this; the earth - land, water, rivers, mountains, waterfalls, oceans, valleys, hills, plants galore, animals galore, and a human; the heavens, His future dwelling place in all the elaborate fancies we can conjure into our limited imaginations and then some; morning and evening.  It was ALL GOOD.  All of it. All of it good...everything down to the last little mosquito and mouse.
      By saying it was VERY GOOD, He, the creator of it all, was saying it was "perfect".  It was as it should be.  God was dwelling with man and all the beasts of the earth, and birds of the air, and fish of the waters.  It was perfectly good in all things.  Beautiful. Breathtaking. Vivid. Bold. Vibrant. Alive. Loved. It was very good.

      Morning.  It is one of my favorite times of the 24 hours given to us.  I love it because if I'm an early riser, I get to see God painting the sunrise and I know that daily it changes...what an imagination God has...so limitless and full.  And in the morning, animals are more active and the birds, and there is a peace in my heart that is so full I want to sing praises until Him for all His glorious creation!  I love mornings.
     Evening. Well, humans have given this two meanings.  1) Before the dusk falls.  When the temperatures have cooled down and the sun is nearing its setting point...thus like morning, animals and birds are active. This is the time to sit down on the porch in your Adirondack chair and have some sweet tea with ice and lemon and maybe a cookie.  It is humanly perfectly peaceful...mostly.  2) It is night.  You go to sleep because it has turned dark.  God has gently leaned in the door of our room (earth) and switched "off" the light so we may get rest for the next fulfilling day.  I like to sleep and I like it more so when it is dark.  So, hooray for evening.

     Genesis 2:18 - We get a bit more complex as we think about that "suitable helper".  I mean Adam has seen ALL of creation just like God.  He's named all the animals and plants and knows each one, but there isn't one he wants to snuggle with.  Now, some may say that God hadn't thought about woman until this point, but God is God.  He already had all this planned.  Of course, He knew she would bite the fruit and take Adam with her and the relationship He had already established would get MUCH harder.
     But, like a doting parent, He didn't want to say "No".  And thus we march into the next verses were glorious, but lost woman emerges.

     Genesis 2:21-22 - The creation of woman.  Have you ever felt on a man or a boy their ribs.  You'll notice they have 11 and there's definitely flesh where number 12 "should" be.  And on a woman or a girl, you'll find she has 12 and no extra flesh where a rib "should" be.  I like to think how man was created from dirt.  And woman, we were created from flesh and bone.  We are wholly a part of man and thus man is wholly part of us because we bear them after 9 months.
       This is like the best gift ever to Adam.  Someone like him.  Similar to him, yet different enough to be unique and attractive and deadly unfortunately.  She is his second half.  She is of him, for him, because of him, and will be with him always.
       And thus, they begin a relationship with each other that is full, open, and wholly partaking of God.  It's the most beautiful relationship we can think of other than that of God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit.  It is a relationship of love, laughter, openness, perfection.  Something we will not be able to attain until we sleep our final sleep.  Beautiful.  Whole. Loving.  Wow!

     Genesis 2:24 - I love this picture.  You see, in biblical times, the sons would stay with their fathers and live there and work their fields and tend their animals until they married.  Once they married, they would leave their family...move out...and the man would now make his own way to be with his wife.  Now back then the woman's family typically gave a dowry which is how the man and woman would live...it was typically herds or fields or both or all that and some gold or silver.
      It is when the man decides to take a wife, that one flesh and one flesh combine to form one flesh.  It's biblical math and when the right one flesh finds another right one flesh and they work it out right, they should be one flesh.  It's how God intended relationships of the flesh to work intimately.  You think alike, you act similar, you complete the other's sentences, you know him/her inside and out.  You can make decisions based on what you know what him/her comfortably and know that it "right" and okay.

      When the two become one flesh, they take the good, the great, the awesome, the "We are truly blessed!" with the bad, the ugly, the "Why do we feel like God is punishing us?".  They take each other through the thick and the think.  They cry together, laugh together, work together, play together, go to battle together.  They are bonded like super glue...flesh to flesh.
       It's a scary thing when you think about it.  Or, maybe if your adventurous, it's exciting.  It's a journey like no other. A journey in love, life, thought, feelings...everything move you make now effects someone else.  You no longer hurt alone...for he/she hurts with you.  You no longer "win" alone...all wins are wins for the one flesh.  You celebrate together and scorn together.  It's a bond like no bond ever before.  Sure, it's similar to a familiar bond, but very different.
      Again, in this creation, we see beauty, love, elegance, determination, perfection through relationship with work.  It's a WOW thing.

      I love the creation tale.  While it is used time and time again in Sunday school and can seem to get bogged down, you have to admit, it's an awesome wonder.  If you put time to think about what it means to create something, you'll gain a new appreciation for what God did for us.  If you're having trouble wrapping your mind around this, try this: Take some clay or play dough and try to make an animal.  It has to be a 3D animal and try to make it look realistic.  It's hard, even for an artist like me.  Once you have that realistic 3D animal, imagine if it came to life.  That, is what creation must have been like...only way faster!

    Tomorrow's verses:
Genesis 5 - We'll be contemplating the ages of all the people with an actual verse 24 being thought of.
     Adam: 930 years
     Seth:  912 years
     Enosh:  905 years
     Kenan:  910 years
     Mahalalel:  895 years
     Jared:   962 years
     Enoch:  365 years
     Methusela:  969 years
     Lamech:   777 years
     24:  Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.

Enjoy!