“And the Lord God took man, and put him into the paradise of pleasure, to dress it, and to keep it. And he commanded him, saying: ‘Of every tree of paradise thou shalt eat: but of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat. For in what day soever thou shalt eat of it, thou shalt die the death.”
The Lord then took Adam and put him to a work free from toil, and to keep and guard the glorious goods he had been given. Because of the extraordinary nature of the gifts that God had given Adam, it was part of his duty to keep these goods and use them in their utmost sense, something that Adam could do with a glorious precision, given that his intellect was not darkened by sin at the time. It shows the importance of gratitude, for Adam was given a place of exceeding delight, a work that was effortless and simply required application of himself, and a state of grace that kept him in a frame of mind where he could enjoy everything around him to its fullest capacity. So too the Lord has given you a light yoke, a commandment to love one another, and freedom to express this in the way you see most fit. He asks you to work that you may keep busy, but aims your life solely towards love, and then to keep the gifts you have been given by keeping his commandments: “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). Adam, in his later pride, reached for what was not permitted him because he did not harbor gratitude for the beautiful life he had been given, looking always for more. Let your heart recognize the beauty of your life and sing out in thanksgiving. You are loved by God, and He has asked you to keep your little part of the vineyard and bring forth the fruit you can, not asking more than you are able to give. Pray with sincerity: “Lord, my heart is not exalted: nor are my eyes lofty. Neither have I walked in great matters, nor in wonderful things above me,” (Psalm 130:1). You are the guardian of the paradise of your soul, and while the Lord gives the gifts that make it beautiful: “We will make thee chains of gold, inlaid with silver” (Song 1:10), it is your duty to labor towards this beauty and keep the good things within it. As all people take part in a sense in Christ’s priesthood, part of the duty of the Old Covenant priesthood was the upkeep of the temple: O temple of God, O sanctuary of the Trinity, the upkeep is so simple: “In this we know that we love the children of God: when we love God, and keep his commandments. For this is the charity of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not heavy” (1 John 5:2-3). Eat, o Theophila, from the trees of the gifts of the Lord, “Be zealous for t he better gifts” (1 Corinthians 12:31); from His words that are all open to you, “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, you shall ask whatever you will, and it shall be done unto you” (John 15:7); from the living water of love, “He that shall drink of the water that I will give him, shall not thirst forever” (John 4:13). There are devotions aplenty, gifts abundant, beauty unceasing, all He asks in return is the gift of your heart and to be obedient to Him as a bride, knowing that His commandments are those of a more beautiful love. The world has nothing to offer you, Jesus offers you everything He is and has: “For all things are yours…all are yours; and you are Christ’s; and Christ is God’s” (1 Corinthians 3:22-23). Live the life of grace, do not die the death because you wanted anything more than to be loved, for this is given to you beyond all understanding if you will simply open your eyes to it: “Lord, open his eyes, that he may see” (4 Kings 6:17). Finally, when you see that all things are yours that you may fall more in love, appreciate every gift, take nothing for granted, because it is all a free gift of love, a bouquet of flowers specifically for you. It is said by philosophers that noticing the ugly makes one ugly, and beholding the beautiful takes the beautiful into oneself, making you more beautiful. Therefore, to ignore these gifts in favor of noticing what you lack is to fall into the pattern of Adam; rather than filling yourself with the magnificence of the world and the gift of love, it would be to become emptiness and want, which is a path that leads to spiritual death. “Consider that I have set before this day life and good, and on the other hand death and evil” (Deuteronomy 30:15). Choose life, beauty, and goodness, choose love, for all things are beautiful, good, filled and upheld with love, and you can see this if you will simply ask: “What wilt thou that I do to thee? But he said: Lord, that I may see. And Jesus said to him: Receive thy sight: thy faith hath made thee whole” (Luke 18:41-42).