Coke & Sin

Emily loves Coke and I do too.   For the most part Emily puts up a fight when it comes to household chores except for one specific chore that she will always do willingly and with much excitement.  The chore is pouring her dad a Coke when asked.  Of course there is something in it for Emi as she collects her "payment" by swallowing at least two ounces of my beloved beverage, but this agreement has worked quite nicely for us for a while now as it allows me to remain seated on the couch.  Emily's other habit is not looked upon so fondly though.  If I look the other way or leave the room for a moment, she preys upon my vulnerable glass of Coke like a lion does a vulnerable zebra.  She evens gets so desparate for the delectable concoction that she will at times just take the glass out of my hand and help herself!  Lets just say we have had some stern conversations about these manuevers.

Last night Anita and I were cooking supper which consisted of hamburgers and chicken.  On the stove was a glistening red can of Coke.  I'm sure Emily was secretly eyeing it for a while. Suddenly the moment of opportunity arrived as I went to the sink and Anita opened the frig. Like a lion pouncing on her prey, Emily darted in and grabbed the Coke anticipating the satisfying taste of the forbidden fruit.  Unfortunately for Emily in her haste to commit the crime, she ignored all of the warning signs.  Why was the can sitting on the stove?  Why was the can rather warm?  Why was the top of the can all dirty?  Maybe it was because there was not Coke in the can after all but about 4 ounces of grease!  Oh yes, we did laugh heartily as she scurried to the sink to spit out her "Coke" and hurriedly drank about 20 ounces of water!  

Thankfully the grease was no longer boiling hot and hopefully Emily learned a valuable lesson the easy way.  In this everyday occurrence can you see some similarities to the Adam and Eve story?  You see, ultimately I am for Emily.  I want the best for her, as God wants for us.  And so a sin against God is ultimately a sin against ourselves as Emily found out in trying to "steal" my Coke.  Adam and Eve's downfall in Genesis 3 really came down to a lack of faith - a sin against God that ultimately hurt themselves.  They did not believing that they had real freedom.  Some people, like Adam and Eve, might think that real freedom is being able to choose between good and evil.  Maybe real freedom is only found when one can only desire the good?  Adam and Eve certainly appeared more "free" before the fruit.