“As soon as the snake saw his chance, he slithered silently up to Eve. ‘Does God really love you?’ the serpent whispered. ‘If he does, why won’t he let you eat the nice, juicy, delicious fruit? Poor you, perhaps God doesn’t want you to be happy.’
The snake’s words hissed into her ears and sunk down deep into her heart, like poison. Does God love me? Eve wondered. Suddenly she didn’t know anymore…
Eve picked the fruit and ate some. And Adam ate some, too.
And a terrible lie came into the world. It would never leave. It would live on in every human heart, whispering to every one of God’s children: ‘God doesn’t love me.’”
[Sally Lloyd-Jones, The Jesus Storybook Bible]
Oh I love how the writer of Lamentations, even when recounting all his adversities, finally responds to the insults from the hissing snake.
Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:
because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
for His compassions never fail.
They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.
I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;
therefore I will wait for Him.” 3:21-24
No matter how we’re feeling on this Valentine’s day — lovable or not — we can approach the throne of grace with confidence, knowing that there we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
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