“The Lord said to the man,“You listened to your wife and ate fruit from that tree. And so, the ground will be under a curse because of what you did. As long as you live, you will have to struggle to grow enough food. Your food will be plants, but the ground will produce thorns and thistles. You will have to sweat to earn a living; you were made out of soil, and you will once again turn into soil.” – Genesis 3:17-19 Contemporary English Version (CEV)
Today’s financial stewardship verse should resonate with all of us. When Adam and Eve disobeyed God, sin entered into this world. God exiled them from paradise and by extension we too have been exiled. Adam listened to Eve and ate of the forbidden fruit.
Because of their disobedience, God cursed them. From there on out, Adam was to work hard to grow his food, which would be riddled with thorns and thistles. The easy life was gone not only for them but for us.
We too have to work hard to earn a living. Albeit, we are not all farmers and grow our foods and raise our own chickens and cows, we still have to get jobs and get up every morning to earn money to pay for our needs. We too have to sweat to earn a living. The easy life of relaxing in paradise and picking the fruit from the trees without having to care for them or plant them is gone. We earn a living by the sweat of brow.
