God helped his new creation realize what God himself already knew—it isn’t good to be alone. He put the original to sleep and shaped from the first human a companion, a wife. When Adam woke up, he must have been amazed. Unlike every other creature in his paradise, she was like him, and yet not just like him. Alike, yet different. Part of him, yet distinct. Another divine mystery.

    God’s divine original had become two—man and woman. They would spend the rest of their lives experiencing and treasuring moments of oneness. The delighted Creator God had given them to each other for togetherness, for life. The gift of marriage was unwrapped that day.

Then the LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is right for him.” From the ground God formed every wild animal and every bird in the sky, and he brought them to the man so the man could name them. Whatever the man called each living thing, that became its name. The man gave names to all the tame animals, to the birds in the sky, and to all the wild animals. But Adam did not find a helper that was fit for him. GENESIS 2:18-20

    Adam and Eve lived in and cared for God’s private garden. Each day they learned more about each other and the mysterious, all-powerful, but gentle being who had filled their bodies with life, their heads with wonder, their hearts with feelings, and their spirits with purity.

    In this world called Eden, God was their future, their heritage, and their daily guide. They lived without concern or personal needs or a sense of danger; God provided everything. They had everything to learn, but their Creator God was an excellent tutor, and they had all the time in the world. God must have been thrilled; his dream had been realized.

Reflection: In Eden there were no masks to take off, no fears to overcome, and no past failures to live down. Closeness with God wasn’t second nature—it was first nature. And human closeness inherited its pattern from closeness with God himself.

    Today, in our struggle to build lasting marriages and our search for the secrets of oneness, we have turned our attention to intimacy and happiness and have undermined the original purpose of marriage: to serve together in the presence of God—lifting each other closer to him, working together for his purposes, his tasks, his calling. When we do that, God gives us what we need. After all, God is the inventor of human relationships. He knows what his creation needs.