“And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.’” (Genesis 2:16-17)

God did something very intentional when he created humans during that first week of creation: He gave us the ability to choose.

He created the earth and all the plants and animals, and placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Uniquely among His Creation, God made humans in His image to rule over the remainder of His Creation. He planted the beautiful Garden of Eden for them, He gave them responsibilities, and He delighted in spending time with them. It is clear that God made humans for relationship with Himself; and He wanted that relationship to be based on man’s willingness to love Him back. So, God also gave them a choice. We often call this “free will.”

God accomplished this by placing a tree in the garden, the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, and then telling Adam that if he ate the fruit of this tree he would surely die. This is also considered to be a conditional covenant, meaning that God gave to Adam this eternal paradise on the condition that he not eat the fruit of that tree. So, Adam’s choice was either to not eat the fruit of the tree and live forever, or he could eat the fruit and die. A life or death choice, a “no-brainer.”

But we know what happened. Satan, an angel who had earlier made his own choice to become an enemy of God, set out to win over God’s creation to the enemy side. Satan began a campaign of deception right there in the Garden of Eden, and Adam chose to believe Satan’s lies rather than God’s truth.

Do you find yourself wishing that God had not put the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil in the Garden of Eden? Why did he do that if He didn’t want Adam to eat the fruit? If God had just not given Adam this choice, our lives would have been so much easier, right? Well, in His infinite wisdom, He did give us choices. Our decision today, this very minute, is how are we going to choose?

Our choice is to believe and obey the Word of God, or to believe and obey the lies of Satan. There is no middle ground. It sounds simple, so why do we fail? Here is something to help us to understand:

• Your desires drive your thoughts.
• Your thoughts direct your actions.
• Your actions become your habits.
• Your habits mold your character.
• Your character shapes your destiny.

Many people have been credited with this concept. I believe it to be useful in helping us to make good choices, so it will be used as an outline for the next six devotions. As you can see, the starting point is desire. So, if, according to Genesis 6:5 “every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time,” how can our hearts be changed? In fact, it is only Christ’s death on the cross that enabled us to be saved, that accomplished our heart change. “And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you” (Ezekiel 36:26). “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

When we accept what God has done for us, we are able to build on our desire to make godly choices. Here is a three-step plan.

1. Repent of our sin nature. “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death” (2 Corinthians 7:10).

2. Ask God to change our hearts. “God have mercy on me, a sinner” (Luke 18:13).

3. Make it a habit to remember all the good things that God has done for us. “Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4).

Note that while Jesus’ work of salvation was accomplished once and for all at the cross, our part in our sanctification is an ongoing process. As Paul instructed and encouraged the Philippians, “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12).

Let us start with seeking to glorify God by desiring a relationship with Him. “Happy are those whose greatest desire is to do what God requires; God will satisfy them fully!” (Matthew 5:6) (The Message).

In Christ,

Judy Cline