Gen 3:5 (NIV) For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil. Jesus, help me never try to find some reason to doubt God. Since He has been so good, help me put my mind to it, and see Him as always being fair to me. Motives are extremely hard to read; I have trusted people in the past that seemed to be very nice people. But, later I found out WHY they were being so nice to me. But, help me see that God isn’t like people.

Jesus, even if God did do all these nice things for some personal reason, what did Adam and Eve or I have before He did it? NOTHING! What have Adam and Eve or I done that makes us deserve ANY of the things God gave us? NOTHING! What have we done that makes us deserve even more than we have now? NOTHING! What has Satan done for Adam and Eve or me that would indicate that he has good motives? NOTHING! Let Your Holy Spirit search my heart. Let Him point out my flaws in my thinking. Let Him show me where I am about to misread the situation.

Two major things are being presented to Eve’s and my reasoning powers.

1. I can’t trust God because He is being selfish and trying to keep me down below His level.
2. I should examine this “fruit” for myself. I should decide whether or not eating this “fruit” is best for me.

Jesus, Satan never gives any proof or evidence as to why his words should be listened to rather that God’s. Teach me that, that’s the way the world and its people talk to me. They just speak authoritatively; they just try to say things my body wants to hear. They speak the language of my body and tell me that I deserve sin and extreme pleasure. Another thing Satan and his people do is, they present me with half truths. Show me that God did know that when they ate the fruit their eyes would be opened. God did know they would know good and evil. Teach me that the lie was; they wouldn’t be like God. God hates evil and loves good. Because of the sinful nature in our bodies, Adam, Eve, and I started loving evil and hating good.

Jesus, my body, the world, and the devil are saying that they need to be trusted. They are saying to me that they have my best interests in mind. They are telling me that they are trying to get me into benefits that God and the Bible are trying to hold back from me. Like Eve, I can be analyzing my body’s, the world’s, and the devil's words and trying to decide who is right. Like her, I can fail to analyze the different sources and fail to try to decide WHO can be trusted.

Jesus, it looked to Eve like there was only one way to test the fruit and see if it had the power to open her eyes and make them like God, knowing good and evil. Protect me from this kind of trap. She thought there was only one way to find out if it would cause her to die like God said it would. Help me see that the test is not worth the consequences.

Jesus, show me that Adam and Eve allowed Satan to convice them that the only way they were going to find out the truth about this fruit was to eat it. But, they weren’t thinking clearly; it will be too late for them to change their minds. Like them, I am faced with two choices. First, let me trust and believe God and let His words be enough for me. Second, help me not test it myself and find out what kind of consequences it will bring.

Jesus, like Eve, Satan is trying to get me to just LOOK at the fruit. If he can get my eyes off of whether or not I trust and believe in the honesty of God, he can trap me. Help me see that if he can just get me on the fun, the pleasure, the “benefits,” and the excitement, he can get me lusting after the sin itself. If he can get me imagining how wonderful it is going to be to yield, he can get my mind off of Who created this world for me, Who gave me the beautiful sky, Who gave me the opportunity to become His child, Who died for me and all my sins, and Who has prepared eternal life for me.

Jesus, show me that once my body, the world, and the devil get my eyes off of the issue of the blessings and God, they get me started trusting my eyes rather than God and His Bible. Help me realize that, like Eve, I will no longer be trying to decide whether to believe the devil or God. I will be looking at and analyzing the “fruit” for myself.

Jesus, just like Eve, I will have an additional option of trust. Who do I trust, God, my body, the world, Satan, or MYSELF? For Eve and I, this is a no-brainer. Like her, I can think I am the number one person for having my best interest in mind.

Jesus, for most of my life, I have believed that I love me the most. I have believed I am best qualified for deciding what is best for me. I have believed I am best for deciding who I should trust for associating with. And, I have believed I am most qualified for deciding what is right and wrong for me. So, as Eve and I are standing there making the biggest decision of our life, I am judge, jury, and executioner. I have reached a place where NO ONE but ME matters. BUT, help me always be aware that the Holy Spirit is right there warning me.

John 16:8 (NIV) When He comes, He will CONVICT the world of GUILT in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment. Jesus, teach me that I will feel a check in my heart; my conscience will experience a convicting sensation that tells me that I am considering doing something wrong. Make it clear to me that if I pray, You will empower me to walk away. But, if I just stand there and allow myself to be the deciding factor, I will fail.

John 16:13-14 (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. He will bring glory to Me by taking from what is Mine and making it known to you. Jesus, like Adam and Eve, God has awesome plans for me. He will prove to me His love, His generosity, and His eternal plan. Show me that I just have to be willing to pray and allow the Holy Spirit to reveal all the great truths that are waiting for me.