As someone who usually has trouble falling asleep at night, I often wake up thinking “I didn’t get enough sleep.” A great attitude for the start of the day, right?
This idea of lack directly results from the Fall in the Garden of Eden.
God created in the beginning. He created man and woman, giving them EVERYTHING in the Garden. Sure, He imposed some seemingly arbitrary restriction on ONE tree, but He had to give us free will somehow. *insert shrug emoji*
We literally had EVERYTHING and were satisfied. . . until the sneaky serpent convinced us otherwise. We failed to trust God and embraced the belief that we were lacking- that God was holding out on us. We disobeyed out of distrust and our “eyes were opened.”
Sin is the lack in our lives, particularly, the lack of grace in our lives. We often visualize sin as a stain on our soul. It is actually more of a void, the lack of God’s life in us.
The drama of Eden continues when God goes “looking” for Adam and Eve after the temptation and fall. He asks why they were hiding, and they say that they were hiding because they were naked. He goes on to ask something that should draw us into some introspection: “Who told you you were naked?”
“Who told you you were naked?” Who told you you were lacking? Who told you that you aren’t smart enough? Who told you you aren’t lovable enough? Who told you you aren’t strong enough? Pretty enough? Tall enough? Thin enough? Fast enough? Who told you you aren’t good enough? These are all questions and thoughts that do not come from God, but are planted and fostered by satan Himself.
What makes matters worse is that we blame one another for our lack. “The woman YOU gave me made me do it.” “The serpent make me do it.” I have heard it said that everything we are and have are from God, except for our sin. Ironically, we don’t want to claim responsibility for that.
It is only in accepting this truth about our natures, our fallenness, our need for help and grace, our need for a Savior, that His power can be made perfect in weakness.
This is our story. Our story that we are still writing. God allows us to participate in working out our own salvation.
Why do I think I am naked? What do I think I lack? Who told me that I am lacking? When did I hear that I was lacking? How do I allow God to fill that lack? How do I make of myself a spiritual offering through this sense of scarcity?
Jesus, all I am and all I have is Yours. I am naked and broken. Please come into my life. Bring light into the darkness. Dispel the lies so that I may know who I am, the only identity that matters, that I am Your daughter/ son, an heiress/ heir to Your Kingdom.
