Welcome to Coffee with Christ.  I’m Nikol Jones and you are listening to episode 3. 

If you’re new here, you might want to go back and listen to the Introduction episode.  It will help you get the gist of things so there are no surprises. 

But this is a place where we put normal, ordinary relationship practices to use in our time with God.  Hopefully, it is a time marked on your calendars daily.  If not, you have come to a great place to start making an appointment for visiting with Him each day. 

First you’ll start with a few minutes of silence.  This will help you slow down; settle in, clear the clutter, and breathe. 

You’ll start your time with God by reflecting on what is keeping you up at night.  You’ll tell him all your things and then we’ll read Genesis chapter 3. 

You might be super familiar with Genesis, but it never hurts to start where it all began:  In the Beginning. 

I read from the New Living Translation because it sounds more like everyday English.  This has helped me hear things differently, and I hope it does the same for you.  Part of the reason I’m using a podcast for this is because sometimes it helps to hear things the way they were in the ancient times – when God’s word was brand new. 

These episodes are around 20 minutes and the plan is to post them every work day.  If you need more time on any given section, just hit pause.  Not rushing is what makes this time with Him beautiful. 

I promised in an earlier episodes to let you know when I had some thoughts to share on a specific passage, and today, I do.  I’ll put a link in the show notes in case you’re interested or you can visit coffeewithchrist.org and search for the post called “Doubt.”

OK.  Take a deep breath, release the stresses of the day, and let’s get started by being still. 

What hard thing are you struggling with today? 

What has all of your attention? 

Use these next few minutes to jot them down or say them aloud to God. Ask Him to shift your focus from those things to the things of Heaven 

Yesterday, we read through Genesis chapter 2 and heard a little bit more about the details of God’s creation. 

We heard about the Garden of Eden and the 4 springs that branch out of it,

We heard why and how God created woman. 

And we heard about the boundaries God put in place for the humans he created. 

That boundary was a tree in the Garden.The tree of the knowledge of good and evil. They could eat from any tree except that one. 

Chapter 3

The Man and Woman Sin

The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?”

2 “Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied. 3 “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’ ”

4 “You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman. 5 “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.”

6 The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. 7 At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves.

8 When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man* and his wife heard the Lord God walking about in the garden. So they hid from the Lord God among the trees. 9 Then the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”

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