Day 3 – Broken but Not Banished | Stop Blaming Adam and Eve: Taking Back Responsibility for Your Life

Genesis 3:23–24 (NIV) – “So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After He drove the man out, He placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.”

When Adam and Eve left Eden, it looked like punishment.

How many times does correction feel that way to us? Often, it depends on the way it is done, because some people are really harsh and unfeeling or merciless. But what God did was really protective. 

And here’s something powerful to understand — we can discern when someone is truly covering us versus pretending to. Some people say they’re covering you, but in truth, they’re exposing you. 

They smile in your presence while secretly mocking you, building a case against you, and seeking favour with others at your expense. 

God’s covering restores; human manipulation destroys. One protects your purpose, the other plots your downfall.

It is so good to know, Family, that God wasn’t casting Adam and Eve away, like we do to some people, or like some people do to us. Rather, He was guiding them forward. They had broken His command, yes, but He still had a plan. That moment marked not rejection but redirection.

Many times, when God closes a door or shifts us from a comfortable place, we assume we’ve been cut off. But Hebrews 12:6 (NLT) reminds us, “The Lord disciplines those He loves, and He punishes each one He accepts as His child.” 

Discipline must never be cruelty—it has to be about care. Correction must never be abandonment—it must be about alignment.

Imagine how Adam and Eve must have felt walking away from the garden—the sound of God’s footsteps replaced by silence, the beauty of Eden now guarded by flaming swords. 

All of us have loved and lost, so we know what that feels like.

Yet even outside the garden, God was still there. Even though Adam and Eve had been sent out of Eden because of their disobedience, God didn’t abandon them. His presence, care, and plan continued beyond the garden.

How do we know? Because just one chapter later, Genesis 4:26 (NIV) says, “At that time people began to call on the name of the Lord.” That means worship continued even outside paradise.

Family, being sent out, disfellowshipped or pushed aside, whether from the church, a friendship, family circle, or business connection, doesn’t mean God is finished with us.

Sometimes God moves us to grow us. He allows people to think they’re doing us harm, when in reality, He’s using their actions to position us for a greater purpose and maturity.

I have come to learn that there are seasons when God’s love sends us away from what was comfortable so He can prepare us for what’s next. 

If Adam and Eve had stayed in Eden, they would have remained in sin’s shadow; leaving the garden made room for the story of redemption to unfold. Can any of us see that in our situations today?

Maybe you’re in a place that feels like “outside the garden.” I have been there. Maybe you’ve lost something precious—a job, a relationship, a dream—and it feels like God pushed you away. I have been there. 

Look at it this way: what if God is actually positioning us? What if this is not the end, but the beginning of something new? This is a call to change our perspective.

God’s presence doesn’t stay behind in perfect places; it travels with His people, who are imperfect. Even when we’re walking through consequence, He walks with us in compassion. His grace goes where Eden cannot.

So, sometimes, being “banished” from a season is how God protects us from something that could destroy our purpose. He’s not saying, “I’m done with you.” He’s saying, “I’m developing you.” 

The message is, Family: What feels like distance is often divine direction. Don’t confuse God’s correction with His rejection, because God never rejects His own. His discipline is proof of His love, not the withdrawal of it.

Just as a parent guides a child away from danger, God guides us away from what could destroy us, even when we don’t understand it.

Today, we may be broken, but we are not banished. We may be outside our comfort zone, but we are still inside His covenant. He still calls our name, still covers us with grace, and still has a plan for our future. To that I say AMENNNN…

So, if God has led you out of a place you once called “home,” lift your eyes, as Eden was never the destination; it was the beginning of the journey. 

Where you are now might look different, but His presence is still with you.

Being sent out isn’t being cast off. Sometimes God moves us to grow us, and even outside the garden, His love still leads the way.