Rom 8:13 (NIV) For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if BY the Spirit YOU put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live. Jesus, as You take me into this next segment of training, teach me how to not only believe in the creation power of the Scriptures in the Bible, lead me into the Holy Spirit’s power to make all the things of God possible for me.

Jesus, teach me how have the power to control my eyes and my thoughts by concentrating on the Truth of Your Word. And, help me know how to yield to the power of the Holy Spirt so I can concentrate on Your Word. Show me another way for me to learn how to concentrate on God’s Word. Let me see HOW Satan brings distractions my way. Once I learn what distractions look like, help me be able to yield to the power of the Holy Spirit so I can ignore or resist them. Then help me concentrate on God and the things of God. Use the example of Adam and Eve’s temptation to help me learn these things.

Jesus, just like Peter struggled with focusing his eyes on You rather than the wind and the waves, show me that Adam and Eve had problems with focusing on God’s commands rather than Satan’s temptations. Show me Eve as she goes from faith in and obedience to God to putting her faith in and giving her obedience to Satan. Teach me about Satan and his five step temptation techniques that he uses on everyone; and, Eve fell for them.

Gen 2:16-17 (NIV) And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.” Jesus, teach me that God spoke to Adam and Eve in creation power. Help me understand that the moment He spoke, they had the power to not eat from the forbidden tree. If God gave them the rules but didn’t give them the power to obey the rules, it would have been unjust.

1 Cor 6:19-20 (NIV) Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, Who is in you, Whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body. Jesus, make it clear to me that I have the power of the Holy Spirit helping me do all these things in cooperation with the creation Word. Show me that Adam and Eve didn’t have that. But, I need all the help I can get. You know my battle against my body, the pressures from the world, and the temptations of the devil pose a lot more challenges. So, You sent me the Holy Spirit to provide me with more power.

Jesus, teach me that Adam and Eve had the power to make their own choices. That happened when God made them in His own image. Gen 1:27 (NIV) So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Help me understand that, that’s how I got my God-given free will. But, teach me that just like Adam and Eve had to have a forbidden tree to exercise their free will on, I have to have my body, the world, and the devil to choose, if I want to, rather than God and His Word.

Gen 3:1 (NIV) Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said (Satan using the serpent’s body) to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” Jesus, help me see that this question was asked so as to get Eve’s FOCUS on the tree that they had been forbidden to eat from. Up to that moment, Eve’s heart was settled on the Word of God. She had been looking at all the other trees in the garden and NOT spending much time looking at the forbidden tree. But, show me that, that is about to change.

John 16:13 (NIV) But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come. Jesus, help me appreciate the fact that I have the Holy Spirit leading me away from my body’s desires, the world’s pressures, and the devil’s temptations. The Holy Spirit is showing me the wonderful life of the Bible.

Jesus, even though Adam and Eve, in themselves, didn’t have the power to resist this temptation, show me that God’s word gave it to them. BUT, help me understand that it wasn’t a power that KEPT them from eating; it was a power that ENABLED them not to eat. Just like Your word, “come” created power for Peter, God’s words, “You must not eat” put the power to resist, in Adam and Eve, if they chose to use it (free will).

For when you eat of it you will surely die: Jesus, help me always keep in mind that fear of death didn’t have any power to keep Adam and Eve from eating. They tried to use this to empower themselves to resist temptation. They even added a few more words to God’s command trying to give it more power: “And you must not touch it.” But, show me that even adding some extra threats to the command didn’t empower them to resist. Teach me that their faith had to be in God and His Words, not in their ability to fear the consequences. Help me always put my faith in the creation power of God’s Word and in the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus, it is so sad that Step One’s mission was accomplished: They were willing to talk about it.