The God Of All Comfort

I hate snakes – I mean I really, really do.  Just seeing a picture of a snake absolutely freaks me out.  People talk about them, and I find myself breaking into a sweat.  They terrify me.

I was born in Iowa, and our family lived in a cute little house that had a small orchard in the back.  On the way to the orchard was grandma’s little house.  I remember wandering down there where she would treat me to milk straight out of the freezer – it was yummy!  There was also a great big sandbox right close by where I loved to go play.

But I learned very early that as I wandered outside I had to keep a lookout for snakes.  I remember more than once mother screaming as she’d look outside and see one just lazing around on our concrete patio.

That’s definitely who I got my fear from.  And my sister shares it, as well.

The scariest time I remember (we moved from Iowa when I was just 5 years-old), was one day when I was skipping down to my sandbox to play.  As I got closer, I saw a long black stick lying on the ground – right where I was going.  I really didn’t think much of it, but right when I was about to step down, it moved!

It wasn’t a stick at all, but a big black snake.

I remember screaming as loud as I could, then I turned around and ran back to the house as fast as my little legs could carry me.  Dad was at work, but mom was so terrified that she called him and told him he needed to get home right away.

He came and went on a search for the yukky snake, but it had disappeared.

Didn’t venture down to my sandbox for a long time after that…

Where am I going with all this?  Back to Genesis 3, which is the account of Adam and Eve – and the snake.  Because to me, having Satan appear as a snake makes perfect sense.  I don’t care how beautiful some of the pictures and commentaries make the snake appear.  If I were to see one crawling around on a tree limb, I would instantly steer in the opposite direction!

But Adam and Eve weren’t used to spotting evil or bad things in their little world.  They lived in a gorgeous plush garden, filled with beauty that we can only begin to imagine.  They really didn’t realize how horrible it was going to be if they disobeyed God.

However Adam and Eve’s disobedience happened for a reason.  God says all things work for the good of those that love Him (Romans 8:28) – even though sometimes we just don’t understand why and how.  Their disobedience started the events in motion leading up to Jesus’ death 3000+ years later, which has given us direct access to the His throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16).  We can come directly to our Father whenever we want to, and He is always there to forgive us and direct us back to the right path.

And here’s more really good news.  Adam and Eve’s disobedience has given us power through Jesus over evil.  Yes, bad things can (and will) still happen, but we don’t need to fear Satan because Jesus died on the cross to set us free.

You know one verse I really love?  Genesis 3:15:  “And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel” (NLT).  This verse speaks of the future when Satan will be crushed forever (Romans 16:20).  He’ll be destroyed (Revelation 20:10)!

Yay!  Bye, bye, Satan the snake.  Our ultimate victory is coming soon!