2017 Day 2: The Fall - Sin and Sadness

"God loved His children too much to let the story end there." (JSB 27)

Ornament: Snake

Scripture Readings:

Genesis 3:1-24

1 Corinthians 15:21-22

Romans 5:12-21

Verse:

1 Corinthians 15:22

Christmas Song: Come Thou Long Expected Jesus

Hymn: Come Ye Sinners

Jesus Storybook Bible: The Terrible Lie (28-37)

Big Picture Story Bible: A Very Sad Day  (37-49)

The Biggest Story: Chapter 1 (17-27)

The Ology: God's Promise of Salvation and God Sent Adam and Eve out of the Garden (65-66)

    This is a very sad story, but also a story full of grace.  We often focus on the promise of Grace to come - the Snake Crusher - Jesus (as we should).  But have you ever marveled at the grace God granted to Adam and Eve in the moment when he had them leave the garden? He had an angel guard the entrance so that they would not eat of the tree of life and life with sin forever. That is also grace! God knew life outside the garden would be hard and terrible, but outside the garden, we would have hope of Jesus coming to rescue us. So much grace.  

     Life outside the garden (ugh, do we really have to talk about this?) - it is all we know, and yet, the very core of our being screams that life is not as it should be.  This is a sad story for all of us.  Even this morning, I found myself trying to suppress reality as I pulled the covers over my head thinking about life with three Littles running around the house and a newborn to feed and being so tired. Ugly thoughts (THOUGHTS, not even words) flew through my mind. Surprise! I don't jump out of bed each morning singing "O What a Beautiful Morning." Let's face it. Life is sometimes bleh and just plain hard. Sin is everywhere, and I am lured by it every way I turn - from justifying my own actions and being self righteous and judgmental, to being selfish and unkind to my own children and husband.  Sin permeates the center of me, and it is yucky and gross and evil.
     This is NOT how things were meant to be! Life is not supposed to be lived outside the garden, outside the presence of God. We are supposed to be living out a glorious ending to a very good beginning, an ending where we live happily forever after with God. He is supposed to dwell with His people and they with Him.

     So life might feel terrible today. You might be weary. I know I am. You might be torn apart with grief and fear as our world falls into the most awful of chaos. When you are, remember one of the greatest single words in Christian theology: but. We might be weary and filled with grief, but the best is yet to come. Our grandparents in the garden might have condemned us to dwell in a fallen world, but we have a promise of a Snake Crusher to come.  Sin might be powerful, but God's love and promise is greater. We might not be dwelling in the garden with God now, but we will in the true life to come.
     How do we explain this to our little ones? Teach them about the "very sad day." Teach them that there are consequences for disobeying God's good word, but live out His gracious promises before them as you mess up so badly that you don't know how you can possibly keep going.  Show them what it is to be desperate for God and His mercy and His holiness.  Sin is our current reality, but God promises that there is an even greater reality to come. We may be outside the garden today, but it won't last forever.


Tidings and tidbits:

•  For our ornament, we chose to make an "apple" with a snake on it.  I have used felt for them so far, just because it's easy with my kids, and I can write the verse on the back as my own memory helper. 
• There are lots of other fun activities you can do to review the story throughout the day - like make snakes out of play dough or bread dough or talk about the garden as you play or take a walk outside. Don't miss those teaching moments as you go about your day even if your children are too young to talk. They are never too young to hear the Gospel!
• Don't miss the opportunity to read The Biggest Story today.  Look for the snake in the art. My kids love doing that.
• After reading The Big Picture Story Bible, ask your young ones why Adam and Eve had to leave the garden. This is a great stepping stone to the Gospel in their lives and that all sin is against God.
• Another fun resource for the Christmas season is this advent calendar by Jaquie Lawson. This is one of my family's favorite traditions. You can keep the calendar on your computer as long as you want so you can revisit throughout the year.