STATION 2

(participant reads)
Collect an apple and hold it for the first part of the reading.

A summary of Genesis 3:
God tells Adam and Eve that they are free to eat any of the fruit in the garden except from one particular tree. If they eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they will die.
In the garden lives a clever serpent. One day he plays a nasty trick on Eve. The serpent speaks to Eve. 
”There couldn’t possibly be anything wrong with eating the fruit from the special tree.  Surely God was only joking when He gave you that warning!”  
The fruit looks delicious.  So delicious, that Eve believes the lying serpent.  She eats the fruit and also gives some to Adam.   
Suddenly Adam and Eve feel very ashamed.  
They realise they are naked.  They cover themselves with clothes made from leaves and hide when God comes to visit.  
God knows straight away that Adam and Eve have rejected God’s instructions and eaten the fruit.  
God is deeply grieved. 
This rejection creates distance between God and Adam & Eve, and God sends them out of the garden. 
A permanent stain marks the relationship between God and human beings.  This stain effects other relationships too — relationships between humans; their relationship within themselves; and, their relationship with the rest of Creation.
Something that had been perfectly whole is now incomplete. Corrupted.  Distorted.
Sadly, Adam and Eve’s choices are just the beginning.  Creation turns in on itself and unravels.

(guide reads)
Bite into your apple, and ask yourself what you notice about the experience of eating as you continue to read.

In what way might God relate to the experience of trauma?
 
Does God vex over the notion of evil whispering in the ear of His children?
 
Does God wish for the woman and man to have a stronger resolve in the face of temptation?
 
Does God grieve over the efforts His children make at hiding their vulnerability?
 
How is God when children reject Him?
 
God seems to be on the lookout in the wake of rejection.
Accustomed to walking with His children, God steps out in anticipation.
But they are missing.  Not just missing — hiding.  
Ashamed.

God appears to be curious.  
Everything has changed, yet God is still looking to walk with the humans.
Moving toward us even if we have distanced ourselves from him.

God is asking after us.
God is moving toward us.
 
Disruption and separation can be overwhelming.
Disaster in the world. Corruption among my leaders.
Disappointment with family. Isolation in friendships.
Loneliness. Abandonment. Anger. Fear.
 
When experience and circumstances fall far short of how I wish them to be.
 
Heartbreak and loss can overwhelm us,  and we find it hard to remember that disruption and separation is not all that there is.
 
There is a larger story.

(click 'next' and make your way to the station titled: 'Prayer')