Why didn't God just start over?

This morning's message was out of Ephesians 6:14a "Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth".

Among many great points (our pastor seldom holds to the rule of three), he talked about the truth of who we are in God's eyes. I am not defined by how I feel about myself, or what I think about myself. The truth of who I am is how God feels about me and what He thinks of me. The truth is that God loves me, and He thinks of me as being important enough that He sent His Son Jesus to die for me so that I could be His forever. When I understand that truth, I better understand that I can trust God with my whole being, I am more likely to get into His Word because I want to know Him better and be more like Him, and I am better equipped for Him to use me in the spiritual battle that furthers His kingdom.

OK, confession time. Sometimes my mind wanders to odd places while I am supposed to be listening to the message. Where did it go today? Well, it went to that age old question of "When Adam and Eve sinned, why didn't God just destroy them and start over? Wouldn't this world be a better place if a different man and woman made a better choice?"  My wandering mind might have stumbled across the answer to that question this morning, and here's what I'm thinking:

When Adam and Eve sinned, God didn't destroy them and start over because I am a descendant of Adam and Eve, and God already loved me too much to stop the process that was going to bring me into being.

That idea is going to be on my mind this week. I hope you will think about it too, because if it is true of me it is also true of you.

What's Hiding in the Bag?

One of our local stores provides paper bags in the freezer department and I used one for my ice cream the other day. In the past, the bags have been nice and strong but they have gotten rather thin in recent months. As I was checking out with my purchases, the cashier lifted the bag and a section tore out, which got us talking about the bags. I mentioned that they really didn't serve their purpose as far as keeping things cold, but they did mange to hide my ice cream so everyone would see only the good things I was purchasing and think I was making healthy choices rather than buying junk food. 

A few minutes later I heard a voice to the side saying "She's getting ice cream isn't she?" I turned to see a friend from church and her little granddaughter gazing into the bag the cashier had placed in the bottom portion of my cart. I had to laugh as I commented that the bag didn't even work for hiding my ice cream.

That event got me to thinking. Just as I was trying to hide the junk food, I sometimes try to hide the sin in my life. I don't want my family and friends to know that I mess up, so I choose earthly "bags" to hide my actions. My Heavenly Father though, who knows all things and knows my heart, can see what's hiding in the "bag". Too often I've bought into the wrong things and sometimes it hurts when He stands there at the end of the checkout telling me what He sees. It hurts me to hear the truth, but it hurts Him too because those things disrupt my relationship with Him.

As hard as it is, I'm glad He opens the "bags" and tells me what He sees in them. In doing that, He gives me the opportunity to confess my sins, become clean, and try again.