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He said to the woman, "Yes, has God said, You shall not eat of any tree of the garden?" The woman said to the serpent, "Of the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat, but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, You shall not eat of it, neither shall you touch it, lest you die." The serpent said to the woman, "You won't surely die, for God knows that in the day you eat it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." Genesis 3:1–5 WEB.

For a while, Adam and Eve lived in the Garden of Eden. It was a literal paradise on earth where it had never rained. A mist went up from the ground and watered the plants (Genesis 2:6). There was plenty to eat, and life there was very good.

Adam and Eve enjoyed good clean living in the garden and never knew shame, guilt, suffering, sickness, or lack. There was only one commandment to obey: "Don't eat fruit from this particular tree in the middle of the garden."

Eventually, a test came. The serpent (satan) convinced Eve that the forbidden fruit, the one thing that God said she shouldn't have, was desirable. He tempted her, insinuating that life would be so much better if she could only have a bite of that fruit. She was missing out, and God was keeping the best from her.

The more Eve thought about it, the more that she did want it. She drew closer to it, examined it, saw that it was "a delight to the eyes." Before long, she was eating it. Then she gave some to Adam, and he ate some with her as well. The serpent was merely fishing, and they took his bait, hook, line, and sinker.

It was a worthless trade. Adam and Eve traded heaven on earth for failure, disappointment, and shame. They lost everything and eventually died where they would have lived forever in paradise. They already had every good thing, but the serpent made them feel that God was holding something back, and they desperately needed it.

Adam and Eve already had the knowledge of good, so all they gained was the knowledge of evil. Through that trade, we learned about sickness, death, and wickedness. The enemy tricked them into thinking that the knowledge of evil was something to be desired. There are traps like that set up by the enemy for your life as well. So be wary of the things you lust for. They are never as good as you think.

Temptation always ends in a worthless trade. It will look good but turn out bad. We have free will and get to make our own choices. Yet, we reap what we have sown. Don't fall for the enemy's worthless trade. Don't trade your integrity for a short-term reward. In the end, you will feel ashamed for having fallen for it, just like Adam and Eve.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, I pray that you lead me away from temptation and deliver me from the evil one. Help me be aware of the tricks of the enemy. Show me the traps in my path, and help me avoid them. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!

Note: Today is Thankful Thursday at the Ministry Events group! This event gives us an opportunity encourage each other by posting thoughts, moments, and prayers of gratitude for Him, His creation and all that He does in our lives. All our welcome! To join, just click on the group name and then the join link on the page that will follow. As always, if you have a prayer need, we are here for you! We and the prayer team are ready to lift you up at our private prayer page: RHM Prayer Network.