Sep
28
2021
One Little Bite
Posted in Bible 4 Comments
I decorated the house for fall.
My husband brought two bins up from the basement.
Wooden pumpkins, shaker boxes, and fall signs were put in their places.
Summer things were put away; winter things are around the corner.
Two of my granddaughters stayed overnight on the weekend.
My oldest granddaughter counted the number of pumpkins she saw on my Hoosier cabinet.
One, two, three, four, five, she counted until she gleefully said, twenty!
There are really only five pumpkins there, but to her it seemed like a lot.
My granddaughter was intrigued with everything.
Even the old block letters that spell, Happy Harvest, made her smile.
I decorated the inside of the house first, with full intention of decorating the outside.
I went to an old barn near me where I can buy flowers, vegetables, and decorations.
I love going to the barn this time of year.
There are hay bales, cornstalks, and mums of all sizes and colors.
I like to go into the little shed, which holds handmade decorations.
I have found things there in years past and was curious what was being shown this year.
I saw a wooden fence with pumpkins, a black crow, and a grapevine twisted every which way.
It was just my style.
I could picture it near my front door, with a cornstalk behind it and real pumpkins in front of it.
Patches, our handmade wooden scarecrow, would be right at home.
I stepped back and looked at the arrangement.
Before me was what had been in my mind’s eye moments before.
Another large, rustic wooden pumpkin was at the laundry room door.
The seasonal flag, with the vintage pumpkins was hung near the garage.
It is so enjoyable for me to switch out the decorations.
Home is important to me.
I like to be surrounded by signs of the current season.
I like the warm colors of fall.
As I was driving the other day, I thought about the color palettes of each season.
We wear the colors of fall, orange, brown, and burgundy as the season changes.
I drove down a winding, tree-lined road and marveled at the tinges of color beginning to show.
I finally saw the colors that have been there all along.
My daughter decorated her house for fall.
My granddaughters love to see pumpkins, scarecrows, and mums around their house.
A picture from my daughter made me laugh.
I had to do a double take when I saw it.
My daughter was holding an orange pumpkin with a bite taken out of it.
By the size of the bite, I could tell it was made by my youngest granddaughter.
My daughter wrote, I have so many questions!
So did I!
The little pumpkin was a decoration; it was not real.
The little pumpkin looked real from a 17-month-old perspective.
It was tempting, sitting there on the hutch, orange and inviting.
Thankfully, my daughter caught this bite-taking little one before she swallowed the piece.
Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil…Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. (Genesis 2:8,9 and Genesis 3:1-7)
One small bite.
It was the one thing Adam and Eve were forbidden to eat.
Everything else was at their disposal.
Four words spoken by the crafty serpent put God’s Word into question.
Did God really say?
Eve took and ate.
Adam, who was with her, said nothing and went along.
Eve blamed the serpent.
Adam blamed God because God gave Eve to him as his wife.
Sin.
Blame.
Fear.
Shame.
All because of one bite.
All because God’s Word was questioned.
All because something seemed to be withheld from them.
All because we always want what we can’t have.
Thankfully, my granddaughter did not swallow the piece of the decorative pumpkin.
Perhaps my daughter will keep the pumpkin with the tiny bite as a reminder.
Perhaps, it will be an object lesson about the Fall, when sin entered the world.
One tiny bite.
Adam and Eve were not Fallen and had one law right keep. They had a strategy to keep God’s command on their own strength. They built a fence around the one law. “Don’t even touch it” was the fence. Satan saw the opportunity to ensnare them. They could have asked the Lord anytime if what The serpent said was true. Instead they sought to obey on their own and failed? Without the ravages of the fall they could not keep one law in their own strength. Why do I think I can obey God’s commands in my own strength! Thankful for our Savior and the Holy Spirit that come to my aid!
Thank you, Mike, for adding so much depth to this Whisper. Your pastor’s heart shines through. “Why do I think I can obey God’s commands in my own strength! Thankful for our Savior and the Holy Spirit that come to my aid!” Nothing more needs to be said.
Blessings,
Gina
One tiny bite…I hope she keeps the pumpkin!
I hope she keeps the pumpkin, too, Sherie.
What a wonderful object lesson that will be.
Gina