Day 3: Designed for Delight
Scripture: Genesis 2:8-9
“Yahweh God planted a garden eastward, in Eden, and there he put the man whom he had formed. Out of the ground Yahweh God made every tree to grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food…”
Before there was a plan, there was a garden. Before commandments or callings, there was delight.
The first home God gave humanity wasn’t a battleground or a burden—it was Eden, which means “delight” or “pleasure.” God didn’t create us in the middle of a battlefield or bureaucracy. He placed us in a garden filled with beauty, abundance, and joy.
This is more than setting. It’s theology.
You were not created for exhaustion.
You were not created to strive endlessly for purpose.
You were created for life with God—rooted in joy, overflowing with meaning, immersed in beauty.
Yes, work was part of Eden. But this work sprang from joy—done in the presence of God, in harmony with creation, and without shame or fear. That’s the pattern. That’s the original design.
We may live east of Eden now, but our purpose hasn’t changed.
Your spirit still longs for delight, for beauty, for walking with God in the cool of the day.
And that longing is not a weakness.
It’s a clue to your purpose.
Centering Prayer
God of Eden,
Thank You for reminding me that I was created for delight.
Help me shed the lie that I must prove my worth through busyness.
Teach me to live in rhythm with joy, beauty, and rest—just like in the beginning. Amen.
Practice for Today
Step outside today, even briefly.
Notice something beautiful: a tree, a breeze, a flower, the sky.
Let your heart whisper:
“I was made for this. This was made for me.”
Journaling Prompt
What does the word “delight” stir in me?
Where have I disconnected joy from my sense of purpose or calling?
What would it look like to live as if I were designed for joy?
Closing Blessing
Return to delight.
Reject the lie that your worth is measured by your productivity.
Live as one planted by God in a garden of beauty and abundance.
Receive joy as your origin and your inheritance.
This is your beginning.
Walk in it.
Pray as You Go
Inhale: I was made for joy…
Exhale: …and planted in delight.