I guess it’s not surprising that after over fifty years of marriage that Paulette and I have the same favorite flavor of ice cream; butter pecan is our common favorite flavor. If we buy a carton of ice cream at the grocery store, almost invariably it will be butter pecan. If we go to an ice cream parlor, like Baskin-Robbins, however, something completely different happens. As expected, Paulette, will order butter pecan. When faced with a large list of flavors my curiosity gets the better of me, and I will order something different like bubble gum peanut butter fudge swirl. Sometimes it’s good, and sometimes it isn’t.

I plead guilty to being pretty curious. I have a strong desire to know and understand, which has served me well as a math-science person, and as a teacher, curiosity was one of the traits I valued most in students. My sense of curiosity has even caused me to suffer some good-natured ridicule. Once when playing cards some friends showed us their new card shuffler. It was incredible. You turned a little crank and the cards came out perfectly shuffled. The first words out of my mouth were, “Have you taken it apart?” They’ve never let me forget.

For many curiosity has a negative connotation. You’ve probably heard the saying, “Curiosity killed the cat.” There is some truth in the saying, for wanting to try something new can lead us to precarious and dangerous situations. Some religious people view curiosity almost as a sin. They are right in that invading the privacy of others is not showing Christian love, and getting the “goods” on someone does lead to gossip. Some point to the creation story of Genesis, and they make a valid point; we have all been in the Garden and eaten of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

I feel the word has two meanings. The one meaning of curiosity is the desire to experience things we know are sins. The other meaning is to know and understand our lives and the world in which we live; this can only help us know and love God better. Curiosity also means wanting to know what is true and what is false. It is by being curious that we as Christians we grow in knowledge and are better able to discern God’s will. By being curious about his word, we are drawn closer to Him.

Please read Genesis 3:1-19, thinking about your own time in the Garden, and remember: God loves YOU unconditionally.

Jim