The Open Road

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The Open Road

Devotional Reading: Genesis 1

Photo Credit: Nocturnal Flame Designs

The journey of our lives begins at birth, and ends in death. In our spiritual lives, this journey also begins at birth… when we are born into a new life of spiritual belief. The difference between earthly life and spiritual life is that once our earthly bodies end in death, our spirit continues to live on into eternity. But how do we navigate the truth of this spiritual realm, this idea of eternity in life beyond our earthly bodies?

We start at the beginning. How did it all begin? Where did everything start? How did we get here? There are so many questions circling, and endless suggestions surrounding us regarding the spiritual and physical beginnings of life. If you are like me, then you may feel a certain tug at your core regarding written text and recorded history, believing that there is truth in their depths. I have read the Bible many times through, and it still amazes me how much truth and consistency I read in its contents. At this point in my life, I believe there is even more depth to be discovered, and it is time to go back to the beginning. The beginning of time, the beginning of life on earth, and the beginning of true relationship with the God of all creation.

There are a lot of debates out there regarding which texts are truly scripture, and whether the Bible known among Christians worldwide has everything included, and some debate on books that were once removed or excluded as scripture at some point or another throughout history. Before any of this came about, written text was the Hebrew Scriptures, the books of law, the prophets, and the writings. To this day, the consistent piece of all Christian scripture texts is that they ALL include these texts and they are consistent with each other in the Old Testament texts, so no matter which side of the debate you are on then you are on the same journey of faith regarding the beginnings, the history, the prophecies, and the sacred writings of the Christian faith.

We begin with the Pentateuch, the books of law and instruction. These are the five books written by Moses at the start of the Old Testament, written chronologically. Genesis is the beginning of time, and focuses on the creation of life, the relationship between God and man, how sin entered the world, and how God dealt with people accordingly along the way. Exodus is the recorded history of the nation of Israel. Leviticus is an instruction book for Gods people, showing them how to worship, serve, and obey God while learning to fellowship with Him through sacrifice and obedience. Numbers describes the wanderings of the Israelites through the wilderness and the two generations that journeyed through this time. Deuteronomy, the final book of the Pentateuch, is mostly messages from Moses in his final years, reminders for the new and upcoming generations of the importance of obedience based on the histories of their past. Deuteronomy is also a book of law, as it as adopted as a second law of the Israelites expanding on the original laws that were in place for them already.

Our journey today starts in the beginning- in Genesis, where we are reading through the beginning of creation. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day.” Genesis 1:1-5, NKJV (New King James Version). The beginning of life as we know it started here, in the moments this took place when God became the Creator of the heavens and the earth. He took the void and the darkness, and brought the light to separate the two. How did He do this? We were not there, and it is not written for our knowledge. The fact that we do not know the details surrounding the creation of something from nothing is something that has divided people over centuries. We crave knowledge and power, and believe we are entitled to answers. But who are we to demand this information? We are the creation, not the Creator. From the beginning of time when God formed life, He intended for us to have relationship with Him and know who He is, and life in the beginning was simply just living, breathing, and thriving in His presence. But how do we know this? Honestly, just reading those first five verses is not enough for the inquiring minds. Our thirsty souls desire more, and deep down we need to grasp truth and answers to the why and the how.

If this is how life began, then really shouldn’t we be asking how did we get to where we are today? The truth lies in the details of how people took matters into their own hands over the years, and time after time questioned the power of God and His nature. Somehow each time people have doubted His faithfulness or His strength and ability, it seems we have actually doubted the words written in Genesis 1:1, that “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” So, if we believe that God is the Creator, and He formed something out of nothing, then where do we draw the lines for what He can and cannot do? At what point do we truly see that He is incapable of something?

The truth- according to scripture, our history of life and where it began- is that God created the heavens and the earth. If we believe scripture to be true, then we cannot deny that at one time there was a void and darkness that God took upon himself to transform into something more. He brought light to the darkness, separated the heavens and the earth, and distinguished the difference between Day and Night. Take a moment to admire this, to truly acknowledge God as the Creator, and ponder this deep in your heart. If you doubt the existence of God, or the validity of scripture as history, then I challenge you to follow my journey as we dig further into the details of the story that follows. I challenge you further to speak out to God, and ask Him to show you His truth and prove He is real, and if you still believe this to be false then consider this: if there is no Creator, then why do people crave power? If there is no God, then why do people have a need to worship? If there is no truth in the scriptures, then why is it challenged so deeply and fiercely across the nations, yet growing still in the depths of human hearts as we desire more for our lives? Why does pain hit so hard, and why does love hit so deep? As a Christian, I believe in the teachings of Jesus, and his life began in the roots of this history within the books of scripture.

This journey of spiritual depth is an open road before us, with so much to cover. There are places to go, people to see, history to grasp and faith to grow. Today, consider the awe of God and His power, the greatness of who He is and what He has done from the beginning of time. If God the Creator can do all of that just on the first day of creation, how much more is He truly capable of in our lives? This world and the things of our daily life are such simple things for our amazing God to navigate and lead, if we just allow Him to do so. Begin your journey from this point, acknowledging the greatness of God- the Creator of the heavens and the earth, the One who brought the light to the darkness. Read the scriptures for yourself, meditate on the written words, admire the work of our Creator and ask Him to show you the way through the darkness that has consumed the world around us. He will do this- and so much more- if you let Him lead your life, one step at a time.

– Adrianne Michele, Author
Nocturnal Flame Ministries

Next Post: “Divided Waters”