Pastor Randy Hoskins

​Senior Pastor - First Congregational, Ashland, NE

May 21, 2022

Imagine for a minute that you are Adam. Imagine what he experienced in those moments after the Fall. He and Eve went from being naked and unafraid to totally exposed before the God of the universe. In that moment he saw a perfect life come to an end. Imagine the weight of guilt in his heart at what he had done.

Imagine the regret he would feel as he watched his sons and daughters afflicted by the consequences of his actions. In the hundreds of years he would live beyond this day, how he would long for those good old days. How he would replay in his mind the conversation with the serpent. How he would beat himself up for his sin.

But there was no escape, no hiding, no retreat from where he was now. None of us can imagine what it was like to be Adam. We can’t know what it would be like to wake up one day in Eden and be kicked out by God’s fiery angels the next.

Yet we do know what it’s like to carry around guilt. Like Adam, we look back longingly on what we’ve lost through bad decisions, failed relationships and the sins we’ve indulged in. We see the widening gap between what we should be and who we really are. We lay awake at night and replay our lives and regret the impact of our sins on our kids, our neighbors, our friends and ourselves. We ache and long for those good old days.

What was God's response to Adam's sin? God asked, “Adam, where are you?” See, Adam was caught red-handed by God. The God who sees all things saw Adam sink his teeth into that fruit. The writer of Hebrews reminds us that “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight.” We are never hidden from God, He knows our every (mis)deed.
Was God mad? Disappointed for sure, but not mad. In fact, with His question “Adam, where are you?”, He came seeking and saving him who deliberately disobeyed God.
The Good News for us is that God is still whispering today, “Where are you?” God wants us to be right with Him, and he offered His son Jesus as an atonement for the sins we have committed. No matter where you find yourself today, know that God is waiting for you and ready to take you back at any time!

​Pastor Randy
402-450-4447

PASTOR RANDY HOSKINS

After serving as part-time pastor, Pastor Randy was called to full-time ministry in February of 2020.
​He and Velvet now live in Ashland.