“But the Lord God called to the man, `Where are you?’” (Genesis 3:9, NIV).
I feel the Earth move under my feet
I feel the sky tumbling down
I feel my heart start to trembling
Whenever you’re around.
These are the words to Carole King and James Taylor’s 1971 chart-topping hit. Ironically, King’s second album was released one day after the deadly San Fernando earthquake devastated Los Angeles. The song, I Feel the Earth Move, was not a reference to the natural disaster that took many lives. However, the traumatic event helped King capture the attention of the world.
Yet Carole King’s lyrics do point to a physical reality we are experiencing presently. Geologists calculate that the earth is moving beneath our feet. In fact, the Earth’s core may be reversing direction. The rotation of the core creates a magnetic field.
The magnetic field guides ships and hikers alike. If a reversal were to occur, all electronic instrumentation that uses a compass to navigate would require recalculation. Otherwise, airline pilots alike would be flying blind. MapQuest would be rendered useless.
The question God asked of Adam is one we all must address: “Where are you?” The great tragedy of Adam’s decision to disobey God was not so much that he lost his place in the Garden of Eden as much as he lost his sense of direction. By ignoring God’s command not to eat from the forbidden tree, Adam reversed his GPS (God’s Positioning System) to accommodate his own PPS (Personal Positioning System). Essentially, Adam lost his sense of grounding.
Conversely, we speak of people who are grounded as being sensible and stable. They are solid individuals who make qualified and reliable decisions. Their steadiness is founded upon The Ground upon which they walk.
Many shifts are happening in our world today. Life is changing continually, and in many instances becoming less stable. Losing one’s sense of direction is a hazard we all face.
God’s question of Adam is our question, as well. Where are you? Upon what ground are you standing? Which of the two positioning systems noted above do you most utilize? When you feel the earth move beneath you, to whom will you turn to regain your footing?
Keywords: Direction, grounding