It happened in a span of about five seconds. I had placed some paper in the dry wood pile and struck a match to it. Immediately whoosh and crackle, the flames spread. And out of the inferno a little baby bird came running. It hit the light of the day and the fresh air of freedom and life. My mind had just enough time to register what had taken place and felt the happy relief for the little innocent bird being saved - when to my disbelief and horror, it turned around, ran back into the wood pile and was instantly and totally consumed by the roaring flames. My heart just sank and I said, “Why baby bird did you do that?”

“And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” (Gen 3:8,9)Adam and Eve had sinned against the Lord God and they high-tailed it for the woods. They ran from the light of day and the fresh air of freedom and life to darkness and dankness and death. “Why Adam and Eve did you do that?”

It brought fire to Eve’s childbirth and submission to her husband. It brought Adam toil under the fire of the sun and he and his help-mate banishment from the garden. It brought a curse upon the world and all generations to follow. But before they departed paradise the Lord God promised them a Redeemer would come. Then He shed the blood of an animal, made tunics of skin and clothed them. (Gen 3:21)

By the cover of night a very religious man came to Jesus centuries later and asked Him - how do we get back to the garden from these dark, dank and deadly woods? Jesus told him to run to the Son for light and life. All else is under condemnation. The Light has been given to the world, but men love the darkness of the woods because they have sinned and they know it. “But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.” (John 3:21)

We need to run out of the wood pile to light, liberty and life. We can do so because “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” (Col 1:13,14)

The Lord God is calling, “Where are you? Come to the Light!” And your answer is……..?