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Ep. 18 Grace Before the Curse | Genesis 3:8-13 | Book by Book
Bible Study

Ep. 18 Grace Before the Curse | Genesis 3:8-13 | Book by Book

June 29, 2022

Hey there, today on Naptime Theology we are continuing our study of the book of Genesis by going over chapter 3, verses 8-13. In this short passage we’ll see God’s amazing grace to Adam and Eve directly after they had sinned. And it’s that same grace that reaches out for us too. 

Grace Before the Curse

Well, we are slowly making our way through the book of Genesis and here we are at Genesis chapter 3, verse 8. If you haven’t listened to the previous episodes regarding Genesis, please do so! They will get you up to speed and build a foundation for today’s episode about God’s grace. Last time we left Adam and Eve having just sinned in the garden and feeling the guilt and shame from their sin. They felt so guilty that they made a covering for their bodies out of leaves where they had felt comfortable naked before.

Let’s first read the verses of today’s passage… even as I read I know you will hear God’s graciousness to both Adam and Eve.

This is Genesis chapter 3, verses 8-13, and I’m reading the NASB version:

They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Then the Lord God called to the man, and said to him “Where are you?”
He said, “I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.”
And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?”
The man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me from the tree, and I ate.”
Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” And the women said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

God Waits

The first thing we see God do in this passage is… nothing. From the commandment in the previous chapter to not “eat the fruit or you will surely die,” we would expect verse 8 to say that God came down and struck Adam and Eve dead because they had sinned against Him. 

Now, that would actually have been a fair and just thing to do. We know from the New Testament book of Romans that “the wages [or the payment] of sin is death.” Adam and Eve did deserve death for what they had done.

But then, that is why we see God’s grace directly after they had disobeyed Him, He graciously did nothing. There’s not an immediate punishment of death given to Adam and Eve. Instead, the text says that God was walking in the garden in the cool of the day.

This was probably God’s MO, He would come to the garden and walk with Adam and Eve. They could interact with Him at ease and just enjoy being with Him. Here God is carrying on as usual instead of immediately enacting judgment. He is graciously waiting and relenting from the destruction that is due to Adam and Eve. 

And this is the very first instance of grace that we have in the Bible. This was actually new to me to see God’s actions in today’s verses as grace. I think I’ve often heard of Genesis 3:15, where God promises to send a Savior to be gracious, which it is. But I haven’t often thought about the fact that God waiting and questioning Adam and Eve instead of immediately destroying them is a great act of grace. And before we go on in these verses, let’s make sure we all know what this word “grace” actually means.

What is Grace?

To be clear, the grace in these verses is not what provides salvation because that is only found in Jesus’ sacrifice. But it was God’s grace that withheld Adam and Eve’s destruction.

So, what is grace? This word is used so much in Christianity. And so many little girls grow up with this word as their name. But what does “grace” actually mean?

Well, a simple definition is this: Grace is getting what you do not deserve. Or even simpler, Grace is undeserved favor. 

God, out of His kindness and love, treats us better than we deserve. That’s grace. He is constantly showing us His grace each and every day. 

We see grace in all good things that God gives to us. We don’t deserve anything good, only death and destruction because, again, we are sinners. But God gives us grace in our lives by treating us better than we deserve. We get to enjoy creations, food, marriage, children, and many other beautiful things in our lifetime. That’s all because of God’s grace. Because He hasn’t given us what we deserve. This is sometimes called common grace because it is available for all people in the world despite their sin, not just for Christians. Unbelievers also enjoy the planet and human relationships which are instances of God’s common grace in the world.

The Bible also uses the word grace in another way. First Corinthians 15:10 says, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me.” This is God’s grace described in another way, as power for living out the Christian life. We see this also in 2 Corinthians 2:9 where Jesus says to Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” This is God’s grace working to help us in our lives. We don’t deserve His help or encouragement, but He gives it to us because He treats us better than we deserve. This is grace. 

But the ultimate, saving grace of God is found in Jesus. As I said before, we know from Romans that the wages of sin is death. We also know from Romans 3:23 that all have sinned. So we all deserve death because we are all sinners. But God doesn’t treat us that way. Instead, He made a way for us to be forgiven for our sins through Jesus’ death and resurrection. That’s grace. That’s why Paul said in Ephesians 2:8, “For by grace you have been saved through faith.” Grace is the only way through which we are saved from the punishment or the wages of our sin. God treats us better than we deserve and offers us salvation by believing in His Son.

This is why it’s no surprise that John Newton, and many other hymn writers, wrote songs proclaiming God’s grace to the world, it truly is amazing. 

“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now I’m found, was blind but now I see.”

I pray that you have not only experienced God’s common grace, but that you have also experienced His saving grace to you that He offers freely in His Son. Romans 10:9 says, “That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” What grace!

And it’s that same grace that we see on display in our passage for today in Genesis.

God Graciously Seeks Out Their Repentance

Back to verse 8 of Genesis chapter 3, God is waiting. He comes to the garden at the normal time, He’s ready for a walk with His people, but they are not there. The rest of that verse says that Adam and Eve had hidden themselves from the presence of the Lord among the trees of the garden.

I’m sure this is exactly what any one of us would have done. When their minds were opened to sin and tainted by it, they knew they deserved death. They had disobeyed the good command God gave them and they knew the punishment for it. So, they were scared. They probably heard God coming and panicked, getting behind the nearest tree.

It is ironic that they hide behind trees. It was trees that God gave them to eat from and one tree not to eat from. They ate from the tree they weren’t supposed to. And now, here they are, hiding from the great Gardener, in His garden, behind a tree. 

This scene is sadly comical because we know that God knew where they were. It must have felt like playing hide and seek with one of your children. They are “hiding” behind something that’s all too small to cover them and you can see them the whole time. That’s how it would’ve looked to God. Hebrews 4:13 says, “No creature is hidden from [God’s] sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.” 

Even the leafy clothing that Adam and Eve had made and the strong trees in the garden couldn’t hide them from God. That is why it is so gracious of Him to not come directly to them in judgment.

After God has come to the garden for the evening walk and doesn’t find his people ready to walk with Him, we see His grace spring out toward them in the questions He asks.

God Asks Them Questions

God first called out to the man, Adam, and said, “Where are you?” Three simple words that meant so much. Herman Bavinck, a dutch theologian, said, “God did not withdraw himself after the fall, nor does he even for a moment abandon the transgressors. Their sense of guilt, shame, and fear is already an operation of God’s Spirit in them, indeed a revelation of his wrath but also of his grace… God’s grace is shown especially when God comes to Adam and Eve and seeks them out. He does not abandon them to their own folly but calls them back to himself.”

Here, God is not searching for Adam, He knows exactly where Adam is. No, instead, God is giving Adam a chance to repent. When he calls out for Adam and says, “Where are you?” Adam now has an opportunity to come out of his hiding and tell God what happened; he has a chance to confess his sin. In fact, if we read further in this conversation, God gives Adam three different opportunities to confess his sin. There are three questions that God asks: 1. Where are you? 2. Who told you that you were naked? And 3. Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?

But those three opportunities are not taken up on Adam’s account and he answers without repentance. To “Where are you?” Adam says, “I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.” To God’s second and third question Adam responds, not in repentance, but in blame-shifting. He said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me from the tree, and I ate.” God is giving him opportunity to confess his sin and he evades each one. 

Sadly, Eve does the same. God turns to the woman in verse 13 and says, “What is this you have done?” Again, He’s giving her an opportunity to confess her sin. But she doesn’t. This is her response: “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” No confession, no repentance. Simply blaming the serpent for the sin she had committed.

This is truly the depth of depravity. The depth of the effects of sin. Because of Adam and Eve’s sin, they were totally depraved. Sin had reached their core and changed them to be thoroughly corrupt and sinful. John MacArthur said in a sermon on this passage that “Depravity is a condition in which on eis unwilling to honestly repent… Depravity is not just seen in man’s inability to stop sinning. It is really seeing deeper in his penchant for avoiding repentance. Even when he can see the sin, experience the sin, feel the guilt, feel the shame, even when confronted by God, he will do anything and everything to deceive and evade and shift the blame away from himself. He will do anything to avoid God if he can, but if he’s finally confronted by God he will not acknowledge his own sin.”

That’s exactly what Adam and Eve did, they did not acknowledge their own sin. But instead shifted blame onto others. Does that sound familiar to you? Because we all follow this pattern as well.

We Also Hide Our Sin

We are often the little child playing hide and seek with God. There are sins that we commit where no human being knows and we think that we can hide it from God. But we can’t. Remember Hebrews 4:13 that says nothing is hidden from God. John Calvin says that “the difference between good and evil is engraven on the hearts of all, as Paul teaches [in] Romans 2:15; but all bury the disgrace of their vices under flimsy leaves, till God, by his voice, strikes inwardly their consciences.”

We hide behind whatever we can so that we can evade God’s judgment on our sin. But it is all in vain when we do that. God knows. But, as Calvin said, God works in His grace to convict us of our sin and bring us to repentance in Him. This happens in saving grace, when we first put our faith in Jesus unto salvation, but it also happens every single time we confess our sin to God and ask for forgiveness.

When we are God’s children we are saved forever from the punishment of sin. But we still live in fleshly, sinful bodies and we will have to fight sin for the rest of our lives here on earth. God’s grace, however, is always ready to convict us and give us forgiveness when we’ve sinned. Milton Vincent wrote in his book A Gospel Primer, that as Christians, “When [you] sin, God’s grace abounds to [you] all the more as He graciously maintains [your] justified status… When [you] sin, God feels no wrath in His heart against [you]. His heart is filled with nothing but love for [you], and He longs for [you] to repent and confess [your] sins to Him, so that He might show [you] the gracious and forgiving love that has been in his heart all along. God does not require [your] confession before He desires to forgive me. In His heart He already has forgiven [you].”

God is always ready to forgive us and we have no reason to hide. First John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” God, in His grace, will forgive you so confess your sin to him. 

That is what God was seeking out when He questioned Adam and Eve in this way. He was looking for them to step forward and tell Him what they had done. And it’s the same God who seeks us out when we’ve done wrong. He wants us to run to Him for that is truly the only way to get away and get rid of our sin, by running to Him for forgiveness. 

So, yes, God’s grace is beautifully and majestically on display here in Genesis 3:8-14. And it’s no surprise that this God who so graciously calls out for his people to confess and repent would also promise the Savior to remedy all of sin in the next verses and specifically in Genesis 3:15 which we will look at together next time. 

What does all this mean for us today? We should be so overwhelmed by God’s amazing grace. It is there for us, as an ever-flowing river to wash us clean of our sin and fill us with forgiveness. 

We should also be able to see God’s grace in every day that we live. First, by being grateful for the salvation He’s given us through grace and that we are not treated as we deserve by Him. Second, by seeing His grace in everything we encounter and have in this world, whether big or small. We will never be able to comprehend the total majesty of God’s grace, but noting it in our lives in one way to give Him glory for it. I often pray that God would give me more grace to see His grace in my life and to know of my need of His grace. We need it every day and we must rest in it, rely on it, and grow in it as we seek to walk worthy of our calling as Christians.

And, just a short note to all you mamas listening. We have an extremely important opportunity to point out God’s grace to our children as we live life with them. Teaching them about God’s grace doesn’t have to difficult. Just simply saying, “That’s because of God’s grace.” as we go throughout our days helps them recognize that God is at work in all of our lives all of the time. And if you’re pointing it out and you have extra time, then share with them about God’s saving grace in Jesus too. Connecting what happens in our lives to what Jesus has done for us for your children is an excellent way to point them to God and His grace.

God’s grace is there for you, friend, just as it was for Adam and Eve in our passage today. Next time we will go over even more of God’s graciousness in Genesis 3:15 where He promised to send a Savior who would break the curse of sin.

If you’d like a resource that I’ve quoted from today or have a question, I’d love to hear from you, connect with me on my blog at naptimetheologian.com. Thanks for listening to Naptime Theology and have a wonderful day!

Resources:

What is Grace? [Ask Pastor John]

Reformed Dogmatics by Herman Bavinck

A Gospel Primer by Milton Vincent

Genesis Commentary by John Calvin

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Ep. 19 How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe | Practical Motherhood

Welcome! I’m Deborah. So glad you’re here!

Here you’ll find encouraging, Scripture-filled posts and Bible study tips. Because theology is for every mom! Get to know me here.

Here’s what I’ve written lately…

  • Nurturing the Soul: Starting Your Day with the Bible as a Mom
  • Home Education Curriculum | Autumn 2023
  • 3 Things I’ve Stopped Doing
  • South Indian Chicken Biryani | Aromatic Rice with Chicken
  • Ep. 21 Why You Need a Bible Reading Plan | And How To Choose One!

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    My day was full of nursing, diapering, scrubbing, My day was full of nursing, diapering, scrubbing, vacuuming, mopping, and home-schooling. Just as I was beginning to feel weary of all I had to do, I took a minute to cut some daisies from my garden and bring them inside. That small touch of beauty brought me joy. When we create beauty we reflect our Creator. And doing that today really turned my disposition around. ❤️ So next time you feel harried from your responsibilities as a mom, take a moment to make something beautiful. Maybe it will make you feel better too.

Ecclesiastes 3:11 says, "He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in their hearts, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end."
    It's an ongoing project. 😅 But that's why Jesu It's an ongoing project. 😅  But that's why Jesus said, "Come to me, you who are weary." We don't have to fix our lives or ourselves before coming to God. He's ready to clean us up for Himself and His glory. 💕
    God's promise to help me. ❤️ Hebrews 13:5 says God's promise to help me. ❤️ Hebrews 13:5 says that God is our helper. He knows what I'm dealing with each and every moment and He's there for me in each one. A few minutes after this moment of tension, the baby quieted down and went to sleep. Then we passed by honeysuckle that Aletheia pointed out and we got to breathe in the sweet smell. What a change in just a few short moments. 💕
    Our bassinet stroller has made this holiday so eas Our bassinet stroller has made this holiday so easy! We have the Baby Jogger City Mini GT with the detachable bassinet. It clips into place and I can push him anywhere. If he's asleep when we get back? No problem, I just detach it and set it close by. When it's time for bed I lay him inside and then carry it upstairs to my room when I'm ready to sleep. I have changed out the mat a few times when it gets covered in drool so that it's nice and dry for him to sleep in. I was a bit intimidated to travel with a baby so small, but so far it has been a dream. 😍 What's your #1 tip for traveling with a baby???
    Psalm 119 is the longest chapter of the Bible at 1 Psalm 119 is the longest chapter of the Bible at 176 verses! It is full of acrostic sections, one for each letter of the Hebrew aleph bet. 😉 The Psalmist goes on verse-by-verse about how much He loves God's laws. And you'd think after writing about how much God's Word has helped him and how he cherishes it for 175 verses that he's got his life figured out; he knows how to be a Christian. Well, here's what the final verse says, "I have gone astray like a lost sheep, seek your servant, for I do not forget your commandments." What?! He is still lost and needs God's help. And, friend, that is also our story. No matter how much Bible study we do, we will always need more. How gracious of God to continue sanctifying us through His Word each and every day. ❤️📖

#PsalmsOfPraise
#FaithfulInPsalms
#MomLifeReflections
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#BibleAndMotherhood
    I spent a lot of my life on tropical islands so I I spent a lot of my life on tropical islands so I am a summer girl through and through. Starbucks can keep their pumpkin spice latte for all I care (there's too much sugar in it for me anyway! 🤣). But deeper than my own preference of the season, I am learning to lay my preferences aside and try to enjoy and grow in each season I am in. Whether it's the spring, summer, autumn, or winter ... Whether it's hard seasons of motherhood like toddler tantrums, difficulty with mom friends, or disagreements with hubby on how to parent... God mercifully uses all those changes and seasons to mold and shape me to be more like Christ. He's masterfully directing my little life to bring Him glory and most of the time I feel like I'm just along for the ride! What are you learning in this season of your life? And, are you a pumpkin spice latte person or no? 😉

Ecclesiastes 3:1 "To everything there is a season."

Romans 8:28 "God works all things together for good to those who love Him."

#SummerBlessings
#JoyfulSummerDays
#FaithInSummer
#GodsCreation
#FamilyFunInTheSun
#SunshineAndSoulshine
#SummerLoveAndFaith
#HeavenlyAdventures
#SummerGrace
#MakingMemoriesForJesus
    This video sums up my life lately. And the caption This video sums up my life lately. And the caption sums up my feelings about it. ❤️ soak up those precious moments with your kids, mamas! They go by quickly.
    Rainy mornings are not my favorite... They usually Rainy mornings are not my favorite... They usually make me feel like doing nothing! But I've realized that if I get up and out of the house, even for just a short walk, my outlook changes for the better. How kind of God to give us such simple joys like scooter rides, river paths, and wispy willows over canals. And even kinder to use them to strengthen and lift our spirits when we are down. 💕

1 The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.  2 Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.  3 There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard.  4 Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. (Psalm 19:1-4, ESV)
    1. Make your own salad dressing! 🥗 It's serious 1. Make your own salad dressing! 🥗 It's seriously so simple! Here's a quick recipe:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon honey
Pinch of salt
A few twists of freshly cracked pepper

Twizzle it up, adjust to taste, and pour over salad!

Not only is it easy, but it keeps those nasty, seed-oil filled dressings from the store out of your kitchen. 

And my next hack is even better, 2: use a frother for your homemade salad dressing! I did this one day when I was in a hurry and I've never looked back. 😎

What's your #1 kitchen hack? Leave it in a comment!

#ChristianHomemaking
#BiblicalHome
#FaithfulHomemaker
#GodlyHome
#HomemakingMinistry
#KingdomHome
#HonorGodAtHome
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#ScriptureInHome
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#GodFirstHome
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#HomeAsMinistry
#HomeWithPurpose
    With all the NEW things that you need to do with a With all the NEW things that you need to do with a newborn, there are 3 things that I've actually STOPPED doing... Maybe you should too!

1. Washing the dishes at night. 🧼
Guess what, they will be there in the morning! I come to the end of the long day and am so tired. Pushing myself to stay up and wash the dishes is not the right choice in this season. So I leave them to be, shower, and go to bed.

2. Listening to podcasts. 🎧
I used to keep up with so many podcasts! But since I've had my baby (and, tbh, even a few months before 😅) I haven't listened to any podcasts. We constantly have input into our brains with social media and the internet. My mind just needs a break! It has helped me focus more on the tasks at hand and being available for my daughter's many questions.

3. Trying to catch up on my Bible reading plan. 📖
Bible reading plans are my bread and butter; they help me get my reading done every day. But I do sometimes still miss a day here or there. I used to always just double up one day and play catch up so that I can stay on track. Well, I've stopped doing that. Now if I miss a day or many days I just read what's on the plan for today. That way I'm still reading and not overwhelmed with a large chunk that I can't get thru.

Evaluating what I do each and every day has become a wonderful practice for me. I'm thankful to God for helping me see what I can handle right now and what I can't. And then cutting out those things that are too much. Homemaking, motherhood, and life in general is a constant balancing and honing. Rest in God's direction as you make changes and grow.

So what are you going to stop doing today? 💕
    ​ I was so worried about how the age gap in my ​

I was so worried about how the age gap in my children would affect their relationship. Would the 5-year gap make it more difficult? Maybe my daughter would be annoyed with a little baby because she's older. Would she get jealous because most of my time will need to go to the newborn and not her? Will it be hard to manage having a newborn and occupying a 5-year-old at the same time?

Well, I'm now almost 3 months into this mother-of-two journey and I can say that I shouldn't have worried one bit.

If she's not cuddling him, she's doing a craft right next to him, she can't get enough of her little brother. But I can't blame her, he is just so cute!

In my head, I always pictured myself having children close together. So to have a gap of 5 years feels strange! But it just goes to show the truth of one of my favorite Proverbs: "Man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps." (Proverbs 16:9).

What I thought would be the best thing for me as a mom is not what God has planned. But that's good! It's made me trust Him and His timing even more. 💕

#FaithfulMothering #TrustingGodParenting #ChristianMomLife #GodlyParenting #RaisingFaithfulKids #MomTrustsGod #FaithfulParenting #GodlyMotherhood #TrustingHisPlan #BiblicalParenting
    This has to be different for each person. For me, This has to be different for each person. For me, I find resting well to be MUCH more difficult than working hard. Especially since I've had my baby, every spare minute goes to a chore or task. A friend reminded me on Sunday that all the housework will be there later and that I need to rest more often. I took that to heart and left my kitchen a mess that night instead of cleaning up before bed. And now I'm looking for even more ways to rest as I navigate life with two children. 💕

What about you? Are you more prone to work hard or rest well? Let me know in a comment! 👇
    I love finding a single verse to hold onto during I love finding a single verse to hold onto during the day. Whether it's from my Bible reading or just one I've known for a while. But when I get to read the whole chapter or book for that verse I am even more encouraged by the immediate context of the passage. 

I've known Romans 5:8 for a long time (20+ years!). But reading the whole chapter this morning really put it into a better perspective for me. What do you think?

1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.  2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.  3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance,  4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope,  5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.  6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.  7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person-though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die-  8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.  10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.  11 More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.  12 Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned-  13 for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law.  14 Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come... (Last verses in comments!)
    Often we look to our Bible reading to turn our day Often we look to our Bible reading to turn our day around or give us some nugget of spiritual insight that will change our lives. It's not wrong to look for those things, but if you read and they don't happen know that that's okay too. Coming back to the Bible day after day no matter what is the important habit to form. 

So go read yours today! 💕

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Hebrews 4:12

#ChristianMom
#FaithfulMother
#ChristianParenting
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    ...Because I do it too now! 😅 though I don't al ...Because I do it too now! 😅 though I don't always recommend this practice, I'm learning to sometimes just let the dishes, laundry, and vacuuming be. Trying to do everything at once will result in lots of jobs half done. So making loving and guiding the children THE job for now. 💕

Deuteronomy 6:6-7 (NASB)
"These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk on the road, and when you lie down, and when you rise up."
    My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the str My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Psalm 73:26.

Literally the verb is simply fail, not “may fail.” This God-besotted psalmist, Asaph, says, “My flesh and my heart fail!” I am despondent! I am discouraged! But then immediately he fires a broadside against his despondency: “But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”

The psalmist does not yield to discouragement. He battles unbelief with counterattack. 

In essence, he says, “In myself I feel very weak and helpless and unable to cope. My body is shot, and my heart is almost dead. But whatever the reason for this despondency, I will not yield. I will trust God and not myself. He is my strength and my portion.” 

The Bible is replete with instances of saints struggling with sunken spirits. Psalm 19:7 says, “The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul.” This is a clear admission that the soul of the saint sometimes needs to be revived. And if it needs to be revived, in a sense it was “dead.” That’s the way it felt.

David says the same thing in Psalm 23:2–3, “He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul.” The soul of the “man after [God’s] own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14) needs to be restored. It was dying of thirst and ready to fall exhausted, but God led the soul to water and gave it life again. 

God has put these testimonies in the Bible so that we might use them to fight the unbelief of despondency. And we fight with the blast of faith in God’s promises: “God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” We preach that to ourselves. And we thrust it into Satan’s face. And we believe it. -- John Piper, Future Grace, 303-304
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#psalms #psalm #biblestudy #biblestudynotes #bibleverses #psalmsofthesummer #biblicaltruth #biblicaltheology #biblicalliving #theology #theologymatters #theologystudent #reformedtheology #oldtestament #christianmama #proverbs31mom #gloriousmotherhood #belovedlife  #christcenteredmama #inspiremotherhood #documentlife #writeyouonmyheart #joyfulmamas #nothingisordinary #letthembelittle #honestmotherhood #gracebasedmotherhood #gracefilledmotherhood #motheringforchrist
    Besides church on Sundays, most of my days lately Besides church on Sundays, most of my days lately have been spent at home with my 7-week-old. Today we went out to the city centre to see one of my favorite views: the hydrangeas at Magdalen College. 🥹 Wow, were they worth the effort! ❤️
    Being a new mom over again has filled my heart wit Being a new mom over again has filled my heart with an overwhelming sense of joy and gratitude, and I can't help but thank God for all the little things that make this postpartum season so special.

The tiny fingers that grip my own, the sweet coos that fill the air, the little bit of hair on the back of his neck, the way he glances up while he's nursing... All these little things are little blessings. It's not all rosy, but it's not lost on me how special it is to have a little baby in my arms day in and day out. 🤱

James 1:17 says, "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no shadow of turning."

every precious moment, every little joy, and every blessing in this postpartum season comes directly from the loving hand of our Heavenly Father. His gifts are perfect and I don't want to forget these small ones. 💕

#ThankfulHeart #PostpartumGratitude #BlessedMomma #LittleThingsInLife #GodsLove #MotherhoodJourney #FaithfulInMotherhood
    As I'm coming into the 5th week of postpartum, her As I'm coming into the 5th week of postpartum, here are my top 4 Postpartum Tips for you!

1. Listen to your body 👂. Remember that you just gave birth and will need time to gain your strength! If you feel like resting all day and can do it, do it. If you feel like going for a walk, go. 

2. Let the chores go 🧹. I mean, do what you can/really need to, but don't stress about getting the chores done right away. Ask for help and leave what you can undone.

3. Drink water! 💦 Your hormones have been on a trip and still are during the postpartum period. So you need to flush your system with water! Especially if you're breastfeeding, you need to drink more water. I aim for 3L per day and it's a bonus if I remember to put a pinch of salt in too!

4. Read your Bible or a devotional on your phone. 📲 Normally I wouldn't give this advice, but when you have a baby in your arms most of the day, you need to find a way to stay in the Bible. And your phone might just be your best bet at this point. I always have the Grace to You Bible app on my phone for Bible reading. And then I keep Spurgeon's Morning and Evening devotional (it's excerpts from his sermons) on my phone as well. That way I always have something to read when sitting so much and nursing!

I have been so thankful for the special weeks right after birth this time around. Here's to finding more ways to treasure it! 💕
    June was fast and full. ❤️ June was fast and full. ❤️
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