Genesis 2:24-25: For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh. The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.
Context: God had just finished creating the world, and had Adam name all of the animals. He had also decided man needed a helper, so he created woman from Adam's rib. God's original plan was for families to be created by a son (or daughter) leaving his family unit to create a new one with his wife, thus becoming one flesh. Also more carnal implications but that's implicit.
Thoughts: Everyone thinks of Eve as the first sinner, they don't seem to think past that. But I don't like to think of her just as the one who was tricked by the serpent—when God created Eve, He was creating a helpmate or companion for Adam. There was so much purpose behind her!
God knew humans would sin. He couldn't be an all-knowing God without knowing we would fall short of His glory (or we wouldn't be humans, right?), and yet He still created us. And He still created Eve for Adam, so that he wouldn't be lonely.
So it's not really important at all that Eve was tricked by Satan, because she still served her purpose as a wife and the mother of Adam's children, not to mention populating the world. (I'd like to have seen Adam do that by himself ;)
God gave women an important role in this world. This reminds me of the things my husband and I had discussed with our pastor once we were married (traditionally many couples do pre-marital counseling, ours was more post-marital due to our unique situation), and it is that in marriage there are three "people": the husband, the wife, and God. Both husband and wife should have God before their spouse, and as He shows us love, love for each other comes naturally.
Another analogy is God as the cornerstone of the relationship, the strongest part of any building, and if you build that relationship on Him, it will flourish. If Adam had been by himself, he might have been 100% devoted to God but I imagine he'd still have experienced loneliness. I can imagine how that path might've gone: Loneliness would lead to distraction which would lead to sin. Either way, Adam needed Eve.
Funny, the very definition of "helpmate" is "a helpful companion or partner, especially one's husband or wife." Can't get any simpler than that!
Prayer: God, make me into a better helpmate for my husband, as you truly intended me to be. Thank you for putting him in my life, and for knowing exactly the kind of man I would need. Thank you for his humor, his heart, his sincerity, his kindness, and his patience. Thank you for making him such a great dad! Amen.
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