Q: “In what ways have you seen being in the Word impact your life?”
A: Do you have a few days to sit with me? I think that’s how long it’s going to take me to rattle off all the ways God’s Word has impacted my life.
David describes in Psalm 40:2–3 how the Lord drew him up out of a muddy pit of despair and set his feet on solid ground. Then the Lord steadied David as he began walking again, filling his heart and mind with a new song of praise that David couldn’t help but sing.
This is what the Word of God does for me. When my thoughts are stuck in a bunch of muck, with my doubts and insecurities weighing me down, God’s Word offers me a new perspective that feels like walking in a field of daisies instead of wading waist deep in mud puddles.
I could be having the worst day, but do you know what awaits me when I open my Bible? Hope. This world isn’t as it should be, but God is still God, Christ is still King, and this life is not the end. My dreams don’t die when I read Scripture. Instead, they implant themselves in the sovereign hand of the almighty God.
I may feel lost. I may feel disappointed, forgotten, shaken, or scared, but when I take how I feel and surround it with God’s truth, something else grows: the unshakable truth that all is not lost—including me—and God is bigger than my disappointments.
God’s Word Gives Me Peace
You know that feeling when your insides refuse to sit still and not even a thousand deep breaths can calm your inner chaos? Me too. When I feel anxious like this, I often throw myself into housework in an effort to control something—as if organizing the toy room will somehow organize my life into something more peace-filled.
But no matter how many times I rearrange the toys, it doesn’t work. My insides are still having a pillow fight, my emotions flying around like feathers. That is, until I discipline myself to open my Bible. When I turn to the Word for help, God orders my insides. Jesus says in John 14:27, “My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
The peace of God is available at all times for any given situation, no matter how messy or terrifying it might look. But I don’t find God’s peace in the pantry or on Amazon Prime or when I clean up random piles of stuff all over my house. I find peace when I open my Bible.
God’s Word Prepares Me for the Day
Let’s be honest, most days don’t go as planned. Life has more twists and turns than a large order of curly fries. When I start my day with the Lord, reading and meditating on His Word, I’m much more prepared for those sudden changes of plans. But when I choose not to, the slightest shift can knock me off my feet.
The only way I will stand firm is if I’ve put on my belt of truth and breastplate of righteousness and shield of faith and helmet of salvation (Eph. 6:14–17), by being in the Word of God. Though we may not know how a day is going to turn out, there are two things we can be sure of:
- The devil is actively seeking for ways to destroy our commitment to Christ.
- The passions of my sin-filled flesh are alive and well until the day Jesus calls me home.
Hiding God’s Word in my heart is the only way I will successfully fight the daily temptations around and within me. If I don’t grab hold of my sword before I walk out the door or open my mouth or even cook breakfast, then I may as well be climbing up the side of a mountain in flip-flops. But actively being in God’s Word on a daily basis gives me a fighting chance at victory, no matter what comes my way.
God’s Word Reminds Me I Have Purpose
Sometimes it feels like all I do is feed people, clean up after them, wash dishes, fold laundry, and do it all over again the next day. It’s an endless cycle that makes me think of Ecclesiastes 12:8, “Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher; all is vanity.”
But when I break up the monotony with God’s Word, I’m reminded that there is so much more! There is the opportunity to change someone’s life by sharing the gospel with them. There are eternal rewards to earn and treasures in heaven to store up. In Christ, my life is not meaningless—my life is full of purpose. “We are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10).
God has plans for each of us that include everlasting kingdom work. When we abide in Christ, not even the monotonous stuff has to be futile. Not when it’s done for the glory of God, with gratitude toward God, in hopes of stewarding well the wonderful gifts of God.
But I won’t do that if I haven’t been in God’s Word. Apart from Scripture, my focus narrows to just me and my desert island of dirty dishes. I sink fast into my own needs and desires, and that’s never a fulfilling place to be. It’s God’s Word that helps me rise above it all, setting my eyes on Jesus, His will and calling, and the joy of fulfilling someone else’s needs.
God’s Word Invites Me Back into His Presence
My mind doesn’t sit in neutral very often. If I don’t fill my head with God’s truth, then something else will occupy it. And much of the time, it isn’t pretty. I can easily find myself in a place of worry or fear, lost in “what-if” scenarios, envious of everyone on my newsfeed, cynical, prideful, pessimistic, or just plain down on myself.
When that’s the case, Scripture is my open invitation back into the presence of God. His Word truly “is a lamp for my feet and a light to my path” (Ps. 119:105), guiding me straight back to my Father and His perfect thoughts when my own thoughts can’t be trusted.
Sin separates us from God, while Scripture, when truly weighed and considered, restores us to God. The Holy Spirit uses Scripture to convict me, encourage me, and conform me into the image of Christ. “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16)—even the hard to understand parts.
All this, and yet we haven’t even mentioned how Scripture parades me into worship, daring me to celebrate the everlasting goodness of God. How it infuses me to trust the Lord and lean not on my own understanding (Prov. 3:5–6). How it fills me with joy and blesses me with the knowledge of God and counsels me when I’m not sure which way to go.
Apart from God’s Word, I’d be lost. But with it, I am found and my feet are back on solid ground.
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