Read: Genesis 3:9-24
The man called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. (v. 20)
We know Eve’s story: she was deceived by the serpent, chose to eat of the fruit, and gave some to Adam. Then they were driven out of the garden to wander in a wilderness of pain and struggle. Eve suddenly experienced broken relationships—with God, with her husband, with the land, and even with her own body.
We can look at our lives and notice the family resemblance in our own broken relationships. I know what it’s like to make a decision that destroys relationships with others or with God or with ourselves. I know what it’s like to lose my hold on what had been good, and to wander, outcast. I know what it’s like to plant seeds and see my work fail to produce. However, that’s only half of Eve’s story. Only after the fall did Adam name his wife Eve, “the mother of all living.” Despite what she had lost, Eve offered herself to the work of creating new life. Perhaps this memory helped her work toward something beautiful in the midst of brokenness. If you remember what you’ve lost, you also know what you stand to gain.
We are Eve’s children. We have inherited her brokenness. However, we also carry the ability to give ourselves to the work of new life. We carry that longing for Eden, and the hope for how things could be. —Amy Curran
As you pray, reflect on your brokenness and ask God to empower you to work for new life.
About the Author
Amy Curran is a gardener, a reader, a runner, and an avid coffee drinker. She lives in Durham, North Carolina, where she runs a community garden and a farm-to-table café for Reality Ministries.
