MOTW is back, and it’s been good.  What’s MOTW you ask?  It’s our weekly Men of the Word Bible study we have early on Thursday mornings at a small local restaurant.  We took some time off through the summer but, as of earlier this month, we are back at the table with coffee, book, and Bible in hand.  We’ve been looking at Satan’s strategy against Eve in the Garden of Eden as he planted doubt concerning and then blatantly denied God’s word to the created couple.  There have been many good thoughts presented by our book’s author in this chapter, but one overall principle has been prevalent.  It is this: Satan’s goal was to get Eve (and then Adam) to consider that forbidden tree apart from God’s word.  And they did.  And you know what happened from there….  So here we are several thousand years later, far removed from Eden, yet the Enemy still uses the same strategy.  Why?  Because it still works.  We make choices based on cultural norms, peer pressure, desire to be relevant, or simply “I just gotta be me.”  Often I’ve also heard, “Well, I know the Bible says [fill in the blank], BUT…..”  I’ve even heard, “I’ve prayed about it, and….”  That last one sounds good, but shouldn’t the conclusion drawn from our prayers still line up with the Word of God?  I guess what I’m saying is that I have been refreshingly reminded of the absolute authority of Scripture for every area of my life.  I must consider every decision, every path, every relationship, everything through the lens of God’s word.  I wonder what would have happened if Adam and Eve had done that?  No way of really knowing.  I wonder what would happen if you and I would always do that?  That’s something to think about!