“And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: (every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden. vs.9) But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” Genesis 2:16-17

With the choice of Life or Death, I would think that our first parents would have immediately headed for the center of the garden.   Were they dilly-dallying, haphazardly making their way through the garden, tasting the fruit from the other trees, when they were stopped by the devil “who had the power of death?” (Hebrews 2:14) Was the tree of life not as attractive as the others?

Were they so caught up in their surroundings that they were totally unaware of the danger of disobeying God’s command?  I can relate.  We can be distracted by the many blessings that our heavenly Father bestows on us.  The things become our focus. We then, forgetting our intentions and our goal for life,  are detained, “staying too long at the fair.” Deceived by our own lusts (James 1:12-15)  we settle for what is easy and what looks good in this life, instead of moving on in pursuit of God and His holiness. (Hebrews 12:14)

In the middle of this wilderness Jesus Christ still waits.  He is that tree of Life to all whose hearts and minds are focused, and feast on Him.  We must pray for the diligence and discipline to keep our eyes on Him; for the Spirit of wisdom to enable us to recognize the distractions of the enemy and the world; and for perseverance to proceed to the goal—Christ, Himself.

 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God,
and of Jesus our Lord,
According as his divine power
hath given unto us all things
that pertain unto life and godliness,
through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
2 Peter 1: 2-3

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