Wanting Back In The Garden
"10 A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. 11 The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12 (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin [f] and onyx are also there.) 13 The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush. [g] 14 The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Asshur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates." Genesis 2:10-14
For those who are unaware, the Tigris river and the Euphrates river are located in the country presently known as Iraq. I find it interesting that this region of the world has been in turmoil ever since Adam and Eve first ate the forbidden fruit. America is not the only empire to wage war and shed blood in the birthplace of civilization. Long before America began its war campaign there was the Assyrian Empire, Alexander the Great, the Persian Empire, the Roman Empire and the Ottoman Empire. I have no evidence, but my guess is that more blood has been shed in Iraq than any other place in the world.
It seems as that all people, from Assyria to America, have this subconscious desire to return to the garden. As evidenced by history, we have this deep yearning to return to the paradise from which we were caste out. The craving for the paradise of the garden is so intense that people have been willing to do whatever necessary to take back what was lost in our sinful rebellion from God. This pursuit, however, is futile because paradise was lost forever when we choose to become gods ourselves.
Sadly we have not learned much since Adam and Eve's blunder. In Iraq today the bullets and the blood continue to saturate the land. It appears that one piece of fruit wasn't enough. After all this time we still want to be gods unto ourselves. Do we think becoming a god make will us pure and just? When will we realize that the consequences of our actions will affect generations to come. Adam and Eve may have thought their sin only affected them, but it forever changed God's relationship to his creation. The same is true of our actions in the Iraq crisis. The means we use to resolve this crisis will affect my future grandchildren and beyond.
There is hope amidst the sadness. Though we were banned from the garden, it is by the grace of God that we may still enter the kingdom. So may the floodgates open to let the grace of God rain down and replenish a land left desolate and scorched by mankind's desire to ascend to a place he or she does not belong.
Coming next week: Tapping Into The Goodness; also, if you're wondering what i'm up to or want a good laugh, then you can visit cjewing.blogspot.com
