Hiding

And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. (Genesis 3:8)

Sin had consequences for Adam and Eve. Their relationship with each other was damaged. Blame was the name of the game as Adam blamed Eve who blamed the serpent. All relationships feel the tug of that tendency even today. All of us were affected by that first sin.

But the worst consequence was that which changed their closeness to God. No longer walking with Him in the garden; now they hid from Him, not wanting to face Him.

When we feel a distance growing in our attitude toward God… when we don't feel like praying… when we would rather not read our Bible as we know we should… it's a good time for some self-examination. Am I harboring some sin that makes me want to hide from my God?

He was still there in the garden, wanting a relationship with Adam and Eve. He forgave their sin, just as He wants to forgive yours and mine.

Do you remember what it was like when you walked with Him? Before you started hiding from Him? Well, you can get that back. It's as simple as stepping out from our hiding place (John 6:37) and having a talk with Him about the sin that caused the problem in the first place (1 John 1:9).

If you are hiding, may I challenge you to do that, today?