Mythical Medical Discovery…

totally fictional but also factual

Sis, I need your help so that I don’t feel like I am totally alone here. Like, please, tell me that I am not the only one that has ever fallen victim to a case of Eve-itis. 🤭 Ha! I totally just made that up, but I feel it could qualify as an actual ailment. The most notable symptom would be doing things that you shouldn’t even when you know better. I do not believe that Eve-itis is contagious (except maybe in middle school students 🤷🏻‍♀️), but it does tend to show up frequently in our lives. So, the question for me is, why? Why do I continue to do dumb things when I know better? Well… I may not be able to provide total clarity on all poor choices, but it does help me to know that this has been a condition that we, as humans, have suffered from since the very beginning of time. Just ask Eve…

So, since I just named an entire fictional disease after her, maybe we should take a second to get to know Eve a little bit? You can meet her in Genesis 2 & 3, but I am going to give you a quick recap (Megan’s version)… God created Eve from the rib of Adam, because it was clear that he needed someone to help him (some things never change😉). They had free rein of the entire Garden of Eden, with the only restriction being that they could not eat the fruit from one specific tree (knowledge of good and evil). So, Eve really messed up and got tricked by the enemy into eating said fruit from that one forbidden tree… and, well… things have just never been the same. Because of Eve knowing better than to eat the fruit, but choosing to do it anyway, they basically got kicked out of the Garden of Eden (for their own protection, but still) and it has kind of been downhill every since. So…. why did she? I mean, she knew better, right? So, why didn’t she do better?

Okay… so…. this is not even slightly Biblical, but in my head I have kind of always thought of Eve as a bit of a punk, rebellious and wild, with no self control. 🤘🏼I picture her looking like Avril Lavigne, as she rocked out about how “Complicated” things can be over a decade ago. Anyway, if I am being completely honest, I think I have unfairly judged Eve… I’ve always been slightly critical about her being so easily tricked by the enemy into eating the only fruit she was told not to. On the outside, it doesn’t seem like it was a hard rule to follow, yet it didn’t seem like it took a lot to persuade her to do the exact opposite of what she knew God had said.

So... I have a confession… I think I am Eve. 🫣 I have a tendency to know better but not always do better. Before you judge me let me give you a couple quick examples…. I am talking about like going to the grocery store without a list. This is just not smart. I know better… but sometimes I just simply don’t make a list (or leave my list at home), then silently scold myself as I go down each isle throwing things I do not need into my buggy, all while scooting right past those things I do need. Ugh! I know better but don’t always do better.

Another example, I am a morning person (I know, annoying, right?) and always try to get my workout done very first thing. It sets the tone for my entire day, and helps me just as much mentally and emotionally as it does physically. I have done this for years now and I know, without a doubt, that it is super beneficial for me. I am a much better human if I get my workout in before the sun comes up. So, why do I randomly decide to put it off until later when I know I won’t have the energy or motivation? Because I am Eve. That is why.

Now maybe it is more serious than leaving the clothes in the dryer 🧺, taking a called third strike 🥎 , eating all the ice cream🍦, driving too fast💨, spending unnecessary money💰, or hitting the snooze button one too many times 😴.

Maybe you know better than to run to drugs or alcohol to numb the pain, but you do it because at least for a moment things don’t hurt quite as badly.

Maybe you know better than to try to change yourself in order to fit in with others, but you do it anyway because you want to feel like you belong.

Or maybe you know better than to go back to that person that has hurt you or let you down repeatedly, but you do it anyway. Finding a way out is too hard. Being alone is too scary. Maybe you are convinced that if you could just be/do better that things would change. Regardless, you continue to go back even when you know you shouldn’t.

Maybe it is how you handle relationships, speak to your children, treat yourself, etc. I don’t know exactly how you may relate to Eve, but I feel confident that I am not the only one that knows better but doesn’t always do better.

With all of that said, I think Eve has gotten a bad reputation and I am here to come to her defense. 👩🏻‍⚖️ Instead of casting judgment on her actions, I want to take a few minutes to really look at this story…see if we can find some answers to why she/we know better but don’t always do better… because I am pretty certain I am Eve, and you may be too. Travel with me to Genesis 3, please. Lets enter the Garden….

Let’s start by talking about the fact that the enemy entered the scene in verse 1 as a serpent, a sneaky slithering snake. I find this interesting because I feel that a garden would be a common place for a snake. I am sure that Eve did not find anything strange about seeing a snake in the garden. You know what this tells me… Sometimes the enemy is going to show up in places looking like he belongs there. He probably isn't going to show up somewhere that he would stand out because we would easily recognize him. So, we need to expect to encounter him hiding in the middle of our daily routine.

Not only did this slithering serpent look like he belonged, the Bible called him “crafty” and “clever”. This is important to me because if “the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made” (Gen. 3:1) then it is not shocking that he was able to find a way to mess with Eve’s mind. Did you notice the serpents sly way of delivering the questions that he asked Eve? That sneaky snake took partial truths and twisted them around just enough to cause doubt and deception in the mind of Eve. The lying lizard used words like “Did God really say…” and “you will not surely die…”. This shows me that the enemy knows exactly what God speaks to/about us. It also shows me that he will use God’s words and our human experiences to place very specific doubts in our heads. Doubts that are tailor-made just for us- and used to not only make us question God but also ourselves. That shrewd snake knows where we are most vulnerable, the things we desire, past mistakes, fears and failures… and he will use it all to mess with our minds- to plant little questions of doubt- and it is our job to deflect them. The enemy will take real experiences that we have had, real trauma that we have had to endure, legitimate feelings that we have had to navigate through- and he will twist them up, turn them around, and whisper them back to us in order to cause us to be skeptical of everything.

Have you ever had to navigate through a messy mind? I sure have. A lot. I will be totally fine and then suddenly, seeming out of the blue, I am fighting an old fight/thought/feeling. Something I thought I was over strikes me out of nowhere… maybe because I am unsuspecting or unaware, but it sneaks up on me in the middle of my normal routine and completely knocks me off kilter. I surely am not alone here. But that is how the serpent works…Vicious where we are vulnerable. Quiet whispers of doubt. Preying on our pain. Showing up in common places. Twisting the truth. And just like a snake, slowly squeezing the life out of us.

So, how do we slay the slithering serpent? Well, Sis… there is no doubt it is a fight.

🥊Truth vs. tricks🥊

I believe the way we fight is first by understanding that it is war- and we have to be willing to fight. The serpent wants to control our minds, and the only way he can do that is to make us question God and the truths that He speaks over our lives. The ingenious enemy knows that in order to do this he has to work quietly to manipulate our thoughts and experiences. He knows better than to come at us screaming outright lies, because we would recognize it immediately. Remember he is quiet, clever and crafty. So, we have to identify the tactics he will use and then be on the lookout for them. It is our job to distinguish the difference between the truth God speaks and the tricks the enemy whispers.

Because we are in a fight for our minds and our lives, we must suit up in the appropriate armor- the Armor of God- every single day. In Ephesians 6, this armor is explained in detail. Side note, I love music 🎵 … if you have not ever listened to the song “E6” by Evvie McKinney, I want you to look it up, Sis. So good! Definitely worth the listen (let me know what you think about it if you do).

I want to share with you what Paul says about our fight to the finish that can be found in The Message translation, It is perfect… Ephesians 6:10-18… “God is strong, and He wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best material. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the devil throws your way. This is no weekend war that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the devil and all his angels. Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in the ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.”

Sis, it is a fight 🥊… But we are in this together. We all are going to suffer from a case of Eve-itis because we are human. We all are going to fall for the tricks of the enemy from time to time. I hate to give the devil any sort of credit but he has had thousands of years to practice his tricks and he is pretty good at performing them now. It is his only mission and he has the ability to individualize his attacks on us. But even though the way he comes at us may not look the same, it doesn’t mean they don’t cause similar feelings. We are all fighting. We are all hurting. We are all grieving. We are all tired. We are all at war with the enemy. We are all going to know better but not always do better. Sis, we are all Eve.

So, no more judging each other. No more ugliness, jealously, comparison, or criticism. We are all fighting our own battles, Sis, and the only way we have any chance at winning the war is to link arms and fight together. We are all going to catch a case of Eve-itis every once in a while, but let’s help each other suit up in the armor of God, and encourage each other to keep fighting. I see you, Sis, and I think you are a warrior. Keep swinging that sword 🗡️ Xoxo Megan 🩷