More Like God
By Becky Rule

I have been pondering the conversation between Eve and the serpent in the Garden of Eden. What would be an effective temptation to present to one whose desire is for God? She was not "fallen" like we are, and her motives were unmarred by sin. Satan suggested to Eve that God wanted more from Eve: 1) something more she had to do—be like God; and 2) something more she had to have—a knowledge of good and evil. God did not ordain being like Him beyond being made in His image, but the serpent implied Eve needed to be MORE like God. I think God wanted Adam and Eve to be content with humble humanness, but the serpent presented the idea that something more was necessary in order to please God. "More" in its various forms has been our downfall ever since.

God does not want something out of you; He wants YOU. He wants to BE with you in all your human frailty. We have been duped into believing that being "like God" is the goal. It isn’t. I do not think God was intending or asking Adam and Eve to be like Him. God is more okay with our humanness than we are. We believe He wants more than humanness. Eve saw the tree was good for food (God stated that) and that the fruit was a delight to the eyes (God said that, too). The serpent told her that the fruit was desirable to make one wise. I can hear her reasoning: "Wisdom is a desirable thing; what could be wrong with wisdom?" A portion of this deception is an attitude of independence and a "coming-alongside God" mentality. We also can easily slip into placing a higher value on knowing good from evil than on knowing God Himself. Like Eve, our motives are to please Him; and we think living right will do that. Come to find out, He just wants us, period.

Eve took the serpent’s word about God and what He wanted rather than going to God Himself. It is easy to slip into relying upon another person’s view of God and life with God. An encouragement to seek God can subtly slide into specific direction on what seeking God looks like, how to get spiritual results, etc. When we allow others to define our spirituality, we often come up empty because their series of "10 steps to this or that" refers to their journey. Our individual journey is custom-made for us. What a hidden gift! Like Eve in the garden, being overly reliant upon others harms us. True spirituality cannot be copied or imitated. It must be genuine, original, and lived out--not "spread on." Imitating Jesus is not what we are after. We are looking for the same Source who was His Source. We don’t need to be LIKE God; we need God Himself! Judgment Day is not the only time when it is "just you and God alone." At its deepest level, each life is an intimate spiritual journey with only the individual and the Holy Spirit as true participants. The rest is simply outward observation. As Creator of this intimacy, God protects us by not always allowing what "worked" in another’s life to work in our own. Personally, I find this terrifying because it requires faith in God and His ways rather than trusting in what produced results for someone else. God is in the process of creating the beautiful image of Jesus in YOU. You are an original in each component of your life—physically, mentally, and emotionally. As Jesus is magnified through that unique composition of you, you are portraying a spiritual original as well.

Take courage in walking your own path with God, remembering that God is our goal. Do not be content to walk the trail of someone else. Bravely allow the Holy Spirit to take you on the path He has crafted just for you. Paths are not made FOR walking; paths are made BY walking. It is our walking that makes the path, and Jesus is the way.