Thanks for praying for Cheryl the past few days! This is a note to ask you to keep it up because there’s a real battle going on for the health of her body.

In Christ’s Love, Gary and Cheryl

That’s why Psalm 139 is so precious to us who love Christ. It reminds us that there is One who knows us perfectly – our rising up, our sitting down, the words we speak before we say them, as well as the bad things about us that no one else knows and which we’ve thankfully forgotten. And yet, even though we stand naked before Him, He loves us dearly and safely leads us through life’s trials guiding us with His perfect wisdom. This ought to give us a great sense of well-being, especially at those times when we do not know what to do or how to pray.

Cheryl and I faced such a dilemma last night. Cheryl is a cancer survivor who finished chemo and radiation in November and had surgery in December to remove any remaining cancer cells. From a clinical standpoint, she has a 95% chance of survival. However, the truth about the body is that our parts are intricately connected and dependent on one another for good health. Perhaps this is what the Psalmist had in mind when he wrote: “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb; I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” The body is wonderful because of its brilliant design and God-given ability to rejuvenate itself when injured. However, it is also fearful in the sense of how carefully balanced its systems are. (Click on picture below for full size.)

So when 16 lymph nodes were removed from the right side of Cheryl’s abdomen for biopsy, it hindered her body’s ability to drain the fluid causing lymphedema (swelling in her leg), which sets her up for infection. That was the situation we faced last night. It looks like the infection is returning. Should we check you into the hospital? Or should we wait and pray and hope it gets better? For those interested in how God designed the lymph system and why you need your lymph nodes, click here for a concise and excellent explanation – Lymph System.

Well, the good news is that Cheryl is now receiving excellent care at St. Peter Hospital in Olympia. The doctors and nurses have been fantastic, and she is now on IV antibiotics to kill the infection in her leg. They’ve also done a CT scan to make sure that an abscess has not developed. If it has, she may have to undergo surgery. We are praying that won’t be necessary. But the best news of all is that God knows every detail about her body, mind, and spirit and what she needs even before she needs it. He is her Good Shepherd who will lead us in the right path for her care. With so many wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ praying with us, how could we ever doubt that! As for me, I am selfishly full of praise because I still have the wife of my youth whom I love with all my heart sharing life with me, no matter what comes our way. How can it get any better than that!

So with the Psalmist, I say: “How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake, I am still with you…Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Psalm 139:17-18, 23-24

]]> http://principlesforlife.org/2012/05/23/i-am-fearfully-and-wonderfully-made/feed/ 8 principlesforlifeministries fearfully_and_wonderfully_made_graphic Lymphatic Gary & Cheryl http://principlesforlife.org/2012/05/11/a-few-thoughts-about-mothers-day/ http://principlesforlife.org/2012/05/11/a-few-thoughts-about-mothers-day/#comments Fri, 11 May 2012 20:50:22 +0000 Principles for Life http://principlesforlife.org/?p=4851 Continue reading →]]> A dear friend shared a Mother’s Day story with me from a safer time when children didn’t have to be on guard against strangers. A man stopped at a flower shop to order some flowers to be wired to his mother who lived 200 miles away. However, as he got out of the his car, he noticed a young girl sitting on the curb sobbing. He asked her what was wrong. She replied, “I wanted to buy a red rose for my mother, but I only have 75 cents, and a rose costs two dollars.” The man smiled and said, “Come along with me. I’ll buy a rose for you.

Together they entered the shop where the man bought a rose for the girl and ordered flowers for his mother. As they were leaving, he turned to the girl and asked if she’d like a ride home. “Yes, please! You can take me to my mother,” she said and directed him to a cemetery where she placed the rose on a freshly dug grave. The man returned to the flower shop, canceled the wire order, picked up a bouquet, and proceeded to drive 200 miles to his mother’s house.

If like me, your mother is no longer living, I’m sure you miss her greatly and wish you could spend another Mother’s Day with her. Thankfully, if we belong to Christ, heaven is not far away. On the other hand, if your mother lives nearby so you can visit her, make a big deal of Mother’s Day this year. Or if you can’t visit her, but can call, make time for a long chat on the phone sharing your favorite memories with her, so she realizes how much you love and appreciate her. The Bible says of a godly mother: ”Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: ‘Many daughters have done well, but you excel them all.’ Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.” (Proverbs 31:28-30 NKJV)

Oh, and one more way we men can celebrate this holiday. Who is it that now provides you with the love and nurture your mother used to give you? That gift from God is your wife. Following the death of Sarah, Isaac’s mother, the Bible says: “And Isaac brought Rebekah into his mother Sarah’s tent, and she became his wife. He loved her deeply, and she was a special comfort to him after the death of his mother.” (Genesis 24:67 NLT) Spend a few tender moments with your wife this Mother’s Day, not only thanking her for investing so much in your children, but also for bringing so much joy and comfort to you.

1. It was global in scope. To underscore its veracity, 3 of the first 8 chapters of Genesis are dedicated to the Flood, giving us an exact timeline and dozens of details. Genesis 7 says the rain continued 40 days until the water covered all the high mountains and remained at that high water mark until the 150^th day when it began to recede. Where did all the water come from? Genesis 1:7 says that “God separated the waters that were above the sky from the waters below the sky.” In other words, there was a water canopy (ice rings?) encircling the earth prior to the Flood giving it a tropical climate and protecting humanity from the aging effects of the sun. But at God’s command, “all the fountains of the great deep burst open, and floodgates of the sky were opened.” So there was water from above and great subterranean waters from below. This means there was great volcanic and geologic activity in the Flood. Where did the water go afterwards? It’s still here with us. 70 percent of our planet is still covered with water.

2. The ark was huge. Many wonder how Noah fit so many animals on the ark. In their classic book, The Genesis Flood, Morris and Whitcomb the number of air-breathing animals taken aboard the ark at 35,000, the average size that of a sheep. As the largest ship ever built until the steel ships of the 19^th century, the ark easily handled this number. The ark was 450 feet long (1 ½ football fields), 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high with a capacity of 1.5 million cubic feet, equal to 569 railroad stock cars. 30% of the ark held the livestock with 70% remaining for food storage and living space. Remember also that Noah didn’t have to catch the animals. God brought them to him (possibly when the animal instinct of migrating prior to natural disaster began). Most also hibernated during the voyage, minimizing the work of feeding and clean-up that Noah had to do.

3. The impact of the Flood continues. Psalm 104 credits the Flood with the formation of the great mountains and grand canyons throughout the world today—“The mountains rose; the valleys sank down to the place which You established for them.” In fact, it’s likely that there were no great mountains or  canyons until the Flood. Plant and animal matter compressed under hundreds of feet of sediment also accounts for the oil fields and coal mines that provide us with fossil fuels. The gradual extinction of beasts like behemoth and leviathan (Job 40-41) also occurred due to rapid climate change. The unshielded effects of the sun soon reduced the lifespan of mankind to less than 200 years. Most tragic of all, an entire generation was destroyed because they would not repent at Noah’s preaching and turn back to the God who loved them and made them.

Why maintain our belief in Noah’s Flood? 2 Peter 3:7 says it is by remembering God’s past judgment that we keep from being caught unaware by the judgment to come. For “by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.” Jesus said the same thing, “As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man…people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away.” I write this in love for two reasons: So you won’t be caught unprepared and to urge you to remind your friends in love that there is a way to escape the judgment to come. Our ark is the Lord Jesus Christ who promises salvation to everyone who believes in Him.

1) Collection and Care of Animals. When faced with great responsibility, it’s natural to wonder, “How am I going to pull this off?” In Noah’s case, he was to take 7 pairs of every clean animal and 1 pair of every unclean animal with him in the ark “to keep them alive on the face of the earth.” (Gen. 7:3). In their book, The Genesis Flood, Morris and Whitcomb estimate the number of creatures at 35,000. But at 450 feet long and 75 feet wide, the ark God designed could have easily handled this number. With 1.5 million cubic feet of storage, it was the largest vessel in history until the steel ships of the 19th century. Nor did Noah have to roam the world trapping animals, for God brought the animals to him (Gen. 7:15). Creation scientists say this may have been when God first instilled His creatures with the instinct of migration, fleeing to safety when they sense disaster approaching.  It was also likely at this time that they began to hibernate, making Noah’s job of feeding and cleaning easier than we’ve imagined.

2) Anxiety in the Storm. Have you ever had to weather a ferocious wind storm? Imagine Noah’s experience – never seeing rain before, huddled in the dark of the ark listening to all of nature (rain, wind, earthquakes,  volcanoes, and geysers) explode around you, while you and your family are tossed about on the waves of a newly formed sea. This was the first and greatest natural disaster in history. The anxiety must have been terrible. Of course, they had God’s promise to keep them calm: “I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you. And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every sort into the ark to keep them alive with you.” (Gen. 6:18-19) They had God’s promise of protection. So why be anxious? But then, we have God’s promises too: “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” “All things work together for God to those who love God.” “Casting all your cares upon Him because He cares for you.” And yet, even with thousands of assurances, don’t you still get anxious at times?

3) Waiting to Disembark. The Bible says the rain persisted 40 days and 40 nights with the water remaining at its highest level for 150 days. Then it slowly began to recede. But not quickly. It took 221 more days for the waters to subside and the earth to dry up enough for Noah’s family to disembark from the ark. Remember too that during their voyage and most of the time they rested on Mount Ararat, they couldn’t see what was happening around them because it wasn’t until Day 314 that Noah was allowed to remove the covering from the ark. Like us, he had no calendar of upcoming events or road map of how his life was going to turn out. All he had was God’s assurance that He would lead him one day at a time. So he waited and waited until the all-clear signal was given.

What can we learn from Noah’s experience? Regardless of the dangers through which we pass, God is good and can be trusted. He gave Noah the wisdom to build the ark. He brought the animals to Noah. And once the rain began, the Bible says the Lord, not Noah, shut the door of the ark. (Gen. 7:16) That was the most significant reminder that the good hand of God was upon him, for it assured Noah of his security in God. As such, it wasn’t unlike Jesus’ promise to us, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone pluck them out of My hand. My Father who gave them to Me is greater than all, and no one is able to pluck them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.” (John 10:28-30) So trust Him, dear friend, no matter what trial you’re facing . Trust Him to care for you and to carry you safely through it to the other side.

1) It is evil enough. Some believers point to God’s first great judgment of the earth and argue that things aren’t that bad yet. After all, when God destroyed the world with a Flood, it was because “the earth was filled with violence” and “every intent of the thoughts of (man’s) heart was “only evil continually.” (Gen. 6:5-11) No argument from me that that was the case, nor do I think that the world today is as bad as it can get. But that misses the point, because the Bible doesn’t say the world will be as bad as it can get before Christ returns and removes His people to heaven. People will proceed from bad to worse (2 Tim. 3:1-13), which is a good description of the post-Christian world in which we live. But the Bible says the worst will come after our departure from this world, not prior to it. Paul refers to this in 2 Thessalonians 2:6-7 where he describes “the restraining power” of the Holy Spirit which is now at work through His church holding back the full force of evil. But one day soon that holy restraint will be removed, antichrist will be revealed, and all hell will literally break loose on this planet.

2) Christ’s return is imminent. That means that it could happen at any minute. That’s why believers in every generation have expected Jesus to return in their lifetimes. It’s not that they were naive or misunderstood the Bible. It’s because they were living as He told us to live – as if He is standing “right at the door.” (Mark 13:29) The fact is, not one prophecy of Scripture must be fulfilled before Jesus returns. Anything that remains to be fulfilled can take place after His return for His church, not before it, for His return for the church has always been imminent. As long ago as Acts chapter 3, Peter pleaded with the people of his generation, “Repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you.” (Acts 3:19-20)

3) The stage is set for all that will take place after Jesus returns for His church. Two facts make our generation unique: 1) Israel is back in its homeland after 1900 years of exile surrounded by enemies who reject the God of the Bible and seek its destruction. This is just as the prophets predicted and perfect opportunity for a counterfeit Christ to deceive both Israel and the world. “When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies… and the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place… lift up your heads for your redemption draws near.” (Luke 21:20, 28; Matt. 24:14) 2) All the technology is in place for the antichrist and false prophet to control world commerce. This makes Revelation 13:16-17 not only possible, but plausible. “He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has  the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.”

So, yes, I believe that the time is short and that Christ could return this very evening. The preeminent Resurrection passage, 1 Corinthians 15, promises:

I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed…When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: ‘Death has been swallowed up in victory.’ Where, O death is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”

But if it doesn’t happen tonight – if Christ postpones His return for a year or two or ten – don’t be discouraged. The reason for His delay is grace. “Not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance,” He is giving your son, sister, or neighbor more time to  believe. (2 Pet. 3:9) So do what you can to help them along. Invite him to church on Sunday.  Send her a note telling her that you’re praying for her. I want Jesus to return tonight. But for His glory, I also want Him to be loved by as many as possible in the little time we have left.

Where did he go? I’ll get back to that in a moment. First, let me draw your attention to the inciting event that took place in his life 300 years before that eventually led to his disappearance. Prior to Methuselah’s birth, the Bible says nothing about Enoch’s relationship with God. But the moment he held that baby boy in his arms, something changed inside of him. That baby turned his daddy’s heart to God. For it was only “after he fathered Methuselah” that Enoch walked with God. Mom, Dad, Grandma, Grandpa, let the child you love do the same to your heart. For that’s why God gave him or her to you. Like Enoch, you may not have walked with God in the past, but you can let the spiritual well-being of the little one you love be a reason to walk with God every day you have left!

What could happen if you do? Enoch walked so closely with God that He made him a prophet at the age of 65, the first prophet mentioned in the Bible and the first to foresee the glorious coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. I mentioned in my last post the warning of judgment found in his son’s name. Methuselah means, “When he dies, it will be sent.” Methuselah’s life was a prophetic clock by which the world could gauge the nearness of judgment, for just as Enoch said, God sent the Flood the very year Methuselah died, destroying every living thing on the face of the earth. Only his grandson Noah’s family repented at his preaching. But don’t think the danger has passed. For God gave also Enoch a glimpse into the judgment we face today. ”Enoch, the 7^th from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, ‘Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.’” (Jude 14-15)

Then, having preached his message of righteousness for 300 years, Enoch disappeared. Genesis 5:24 makes this cryptic statement, “Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him.” Thankfully, Hebrews 11:5 gives us this added explanation: ”By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him.” Enoch was one of two men in the Bible who were taken up into God’s presence without suffering death. (2 Kings 2:11 describes the other one.) I’d like that. Wouldn’t you? Why did God honor him in so great a way? The verse adds, “For before he was taken, he had this testimony, that he pleased God.” I take it, then, that to walk with God means to please God and that there is nothing more important in life than doing that.

So my question for you is: Are you walking with God and doing the things that bring Him pleasure? Please don’t think of great projects you can achieve and lay at His feet in sacrifice. Those things, often attained by the wrong means and with selfish motives, don’t please Him nearly as much as simple acts of kindness and prayers offered from pure hearts washed clean by the blood of Christ. “For He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8)

By the way, the Bible says that, like Enoch, an entire generation of believers will one day be caught up into God’s presence without dying. (1 Thessalonians 4:17) How I pray that we will be that generation! But to enjoy that honor, what must be true of us today?  We must continue walking with Him, “so that we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame at His coming. If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him.” (1 John 2:28-29) But more about that in a future blog…

Nor will it work to say that the word “year” meant something different after the Flood than before it. People do that with Genesis 1. They say the word “day,” in describing the 7 days of creation, refers to vast geologic ages spanning billions of years. Tough to explain why each geologic age is said to have begun with an evening, marked by darkness, followed by a morning, marked by light. Be that as it may, there is no question what the word “year” means in Genesis 5. It means what it does in Genesis 11 – 365 revolutions of the earth on its own axis while making 1 orbit around the sun. In other words, a year is a year is a year.

So how did they do it? How did the antediluvians live to be nearly 1,000 years old? Two reasons are given by creation scientists: 1) Good genes. Adam and Eve were originally designed to live forever. So is it any wonder that even after their fall into sin, they and their children lived such long lives! It took thousands of years for the human gene pool to degrade to the point where it is today. By the way, if you want to live to a ripe old age, they say the key is still good genes. So pick your parents carefully. Norwegian parents hold the most promise,  often giving birth to children who live well into their 90s and beyond!

Even more important was the: 2) Good climate. The Apostle Peter states it as an article of faith that the world that perished (2 Peter 3:5-6) was very different from the world we know today. Genesis 1:7 gives a clue as to why. It says that in God’s original design, there was water both below and above our atmosphere, perhaps in the form of ice rings circling the planet. (Have you ever wondered where all that water came from for the Flood?) This would have had two positive effects. It would have allowed light to penetrate while shielding earthlings from the harmful rays of the sun that cause rapid aging. It would have also had a greenhouse effect, giving the entire planet a tropical climate. (This is a possible  explanation for the fossils of palm trees that have been found at the poles.)

So what’s the best tip if you want to live a long life? Be born before the Flood! But since you can’t do that, here are two principles for life today: 1) Obey your parents. Ephesians 6 advises: “Honor your father and mother (which is the first commandment with a promise), so that it may be well with you and that you may live long on the earth.” Why is obedience to parents a key to living long? They teach us the secrets to life. “Look both ways before you cross the street.” “Wash your hands after using the bathroom.” “Eat your veggies.” “Get outside and get some exercise.” Furthermore, God promises to bless us if we honor our parents, His first representatives in our lives, and there is no substitute for His blessing. What if your parents weren’t good role models? 2) Obey God’s principles for life. The Bible is filled with them: Avoid strong drink. Stay out of debt. “Flee sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body.” (1 Cor. 6:18)

Back to Methuselah for a moment. Did you know there’s a hidden warning in his name. Methuselah means: “When he dies, it will be sent.” What will be sent? The Flood! Methuselah’s father was a prophet who warned that God was about to judge the world. Like today, nobody wanted to hear it. Nevertheless, judgment fell. Right on schedule, as his father predicted, Methuselah died the 1656^th year after Creation, the very year that the Flood swept away everything on earth that had the breath of life in it. Why end on that sad note? As a word to the wise. For as long as the lives of the antediluvians were, each one’s epitaph is the same: “So all the days of Methuselah were 969 years, and he died.” You see, the most vital  principle for life is this: Live for something that lasts longer than this life -

The short answer is: He got her from the same pool of prospective marital candidates from which we get our wives and husbands—from the children of Adam and Eve. The Bible is clear. Adam was the progenitor of the human race (Rom. 5:12-14), and Eve was “the mother of all living” (Gen. 3:20) No human being has been produced who was not a son of Adam or daughter of Eve.

But 6,000 years later, this may confuse us. Haven’t we been rightly taught that incest is repulsive? After all, who in his right mind would think of marrying his sister! For we know the danger of marrying close relatives. Close relatives are more likely to carry the same genetic flaws as we. Marriage thereby increases the odds of passing those weaknesses onto our children as birth defects and other genetic disorders. Most of us are aware of the joint and skin problems of designer dogs inbred too closely. But similar problems arise in human families. One well-known genetic disease that circulated among European royalty in the 19^th century, through marriages between first cousins, was hemophilia.

Cain, of course, had no need to be concerned about these issues. For one thing, the gene pool hadn’t had time to decay as it has since then. Nor was there was a specific commandment from God forbidding marriage between close relatives. In fact, most of the patriarchs married close relatives. Abram married his half-sister Sarai. Isaac and Jacob married their cousins. It wasn’t until God gave the Law to Israel that taboos against incest were enacted, to safeguard his people against birth defects (the gene pool having rapidly degraded by this time) and protect from adopting the immoral practices of their pagan neighbors.

So Cain married his sister. Genesis 5:4 says in addition to Cain and later Seth, Adam and Eve had many other children. Jewish tradition says Eve bore Adam 23 children. Of course, she had longer to do so than mothers today. If Adam lived 930 years, Eve likely lived a long life as well, giving her hundreds of years to raise children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and…you get the point.

The Bible proceeds to trace  seven generations of Cain’s family (Gen. 4:16-24), many of whom were very successful in their careers. Jabal became a wealthy businessman making tents and raising livestock. Jubal was the father of all who compose music and craft musical instruments. Tubal-Cain made everyone’s life more comfortable by developing the technology of forging bronze and iron. But it was not a happy family. Moses, author of Genesis, picks two representatives of the lines of Cain and Seth to exemplify the quality of their family life. Enoch, the seventh from Adam through Seth, walked with God and was taken to heaven without dying because his life pleased God (Gen. 5:24; Heb. 11:5). But of Cain’s family, nothing is said about their love for God, for they had none. Instead, we’re told that Lamech, the seventh from Adam through Cain, took two wives (the first polygamist), murdered a young man for wounding him, and boasted that if Cain is avenged seven times, then “Lamech is avenged 77 times.”

Quite a little family! Wouldn’t you say? Maybe it would have been better for everyone if Cain had not been able to find a woman willing to marry him.

]]> http://principlesforlife.org/2012/03/25/where-did-cain-get-his-wife/feed/ 2 principlesforlifeministries OXYGEN Volume 21 Genesis Murder http://principlesforlife.org/2012/03/21/whatever-happened-to-eden/ http://principlesforlife.org/2012/03/21/whatever-happened-to-eden/#comments Wed, 21 Mar 2012 21:11:51 +0000 Principles for Life http://principlesforlife.org/?p=4469 Continue reading →]]>

Whatever Happened to Eden?

I mean the one where Adam and Eve lived. Joni Mitchell wrote a song called “Woodstock” in which she said the solution to our problems is “we’ve got to get ourselves back to the Garden.” I’m for that, but how do we do it? When we hear of environmental extremists keeping gas pipelines from being built or politicians promising healthcare for every citizen, it’s the same song with this assurance added: “This is how we get back to the Garden!” Nothing wrong with the desire, of course. C.S. Lewis wrote: “If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.” You were made for Eden. That’s why you long for it. Trouble is, if we try to find it in this world, we’ll miss it both here and in the world to come.

Genesis 2:10 gives us the coordinates for Eden. It was located at the headwaters of four rivers—the Pishon, the Gihon, the Tigris, and the Euphrates. Only those last two rivers exist today. What happened to the Pishon and Gihon? They were swept away in a catastrophic event. It all began when Adam and Eve broke God’s law and were exiled from the Garden. The Garden did not cease to exist at that point. They were simply barred from entering it, cherubim serving as guards at its gates). But they themselves never ventured far from it, for we’re told it was Cain, not his parents, who was forced to wander east of Eden in the land of Nod.  Adam and Eve continued to live just down the street from Eden in a world that was still wonderful enough that they lived to the ripe old age of 900!

So what happened to Eden? One of two things. Reading on in Genesis, we find that the world was filled with violence and the thoughts of men’s heart were only evil continually. So God destroyed the first earth in a flood of water.  2 Peter 3:6 affirms this: “The world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished.” By the way, Peter warns that this present world will also be destroyed for similar reasons very soon – not by water this time, but by fire. Let the reader beware! So it is possible that the Garden of Eden was swept away in the Great Flood.

However, I think it is more likely that God transplanted the Garden of Eden to heaven where it has been safely cultivated ever since. For the final pages of the Bible describe an Edenic paradise whose gates never close. In the middle of this Garden will be the river of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb, and on either side of the river will be the tree of life bearing twelve varieties of fruit, its leaves bringing healing to the nations. (Rev. 22:1-2), and surrounding this central park will be the holy city, New Jerusalem which will come down to earth out of heaven from God. At this point heaven and earth will again be one, God’s will being done on earth just as it is in heaven. For the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb will be the light and temple of this city.

Any chance for us to go there? The choice is yours. For this is the place Jesus went to prepare for us. He said, “Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God. Believe also in Me. In My Father’s House are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.” (John 14:1-2) He also gave very precise directions for getting there. Thomas doubted, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” Jesus assured him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except by Me.”

So quit worrying about how to get it all and reach your full potential in this life! No one ever does. Nor will life turn out the way you hope. But it can turn out better than expected if you live for the next world instead of this one - praying for and doing all you can to take others with you there and cultivating a character that is suitable for heaven’s culture. Lewis wrote: “If you read history, you will find that the Christians who did the most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next… It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this. Aim at Heaven and you will get earth ‘thrown in.’ Aim at earth and you will get neither.”