Yes, Eve got some bad press. In fact, many people blame her to the fall of man. While ignoring that, Adam was commisioned to be the leader and allowed himself to be influenced.
They were basically in this together and ended up both playing the blame game. Besides this monumental failure, they are remembered in biblical history and the first parents, the first people to be workers of the land. Eve had to learn some hard lessons from her first failure.
The question is what can we learn from the original "First Lady" of the bible?
Lesson 1: Eve was a born influencer.
As women, we are all influencers. I see this with my children and my husband. No matter what I say, they usually default to what I do, If I come home and am in a grumpy mood, their moods will adjust as well. We need to learn how best to use our influence in a positive way.
Lesson 2: Eve was naive and did not consider what the Serpent's agenda was.
In life, everyone is on their own journey. We can not assume that our goals and visions will always be aligned with everyone that we meet. I am not advocating being cynical, but it wise to consider the values of people around us and if their advice will align with our purposes. In every marriage there is strife. I found that if I ask for advice from someone who has an unhappy marriage, that they will try and keep me in my unhappy state. However, if I talk to someone who has built a strong marriage, their advice would be vastly different. Some people want you to be unhappy and hence, they will keep you in a weakened state. The serpent wanted power and used Eve to unsettle God's plan.
Lesson 3: She had a generous and helpful nature
Eve wanted to share what she had discovered with her husband. This quality is always admirable. Yet, we need to ask ourselves if what we want to share will align with our purpose for what we want for our lives, our spouse's life for our children's lives.
Lesson 4: Eve was a pioneer
The first timer's always welcome criticism. There is always someone with hindsight that is going to be able to tell you how you could have done something better. But Eve had no parenting manual, no support group and no google search. She was the first parent. She had no midwife, no sister to give her a break from parenting for date night, but yet she just got on with things. Don't be scared to try new things, you were created for great things. You may well invite some criticism, but that is just part of life, it does not mean that you do not keep moving forward.
Lesson 5: She actively sought out wisdom
People often focus on the "fall". But they do not always see the motivation for eating the fruit. In Chapter 3 of Genisis, Eve saw that not only was the fruit pleasant to the eyes, but it was desirable to make one wise. When we look at a later leader in the bible, Solomon, who asked for Wisdom from God and earned himself not only wisdom but riches as well. Eve's pursuit of wisdom was good, it was just that she did not try to get wisdom from the right source. This goes back to thinking about what people's agendas are.
Lesson 6: Our actions affect others
We do not live in isolation. Our actions whether good or bad will affect others. Let's try and make choices that will uplift our families and our circle of influence.
Lesson 7: She accepted responsibility
When they were discovered, Adam blamed both Eve and God. Because God had given Adam this woman, he was somehow to blame. When questioned, Eve admitted that the Serpent had deceived her and that she ate. It takes a lot of courage to admit our failures, but this takes us out of victim state and makes us instruments of change in our lives.
What I have learned from Eve is that I need to take responsibility for my life and learn to use the power of my influence in a way that will allow me and those with whom I am entrusted to move forward, no matter what my current circumstances are.
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If you are looking for a great Sunday Read:
Try: "A Lineage of Grace" by Francine Rivers, who through these novels, brings five biblical women to life.
This series is about five unlikely women who changed eternity. Tamar, betrayed by the men who controlled her future, she fought for her right to believe in a loving God. Rahab, a woman with a past to whom God gave a future. Ruth, who gave up everything, expecting nothing, and God honoured her. Bathsheba, her beauty stirred the passion of a king, her pain moved the heart of God. Mary, all eternity had been waiting for this moment and she responded in simple obedience to God’s call. Each was faced with extraordinary —even scandalous— challenges, each took great personal risk to fulfil her calling, and each was destined to play a key role in the lineage of Jesus Christ.
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