God’s Words and Ours

J Hioe
J Hioe
Aug 22, 2017 · 4 min read

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” ~ Lamentations 3:22 – 23

It’s not hard to stand in awe of the awesome beauty of creation. Or to marvel at the wisdom that God has put in another person. We see snatches of eternity in these moments, which elevate us from the mundane drudgery of daily living. Better than that, God has made himself available to us through His words, that walk with us all day, all night, and the moments in between. This week, I’ve been learning the importance of leaning on the Word, and also how we can use our words — the act of speaking, or writing God’s words back to him — to remind ourselves of who we are in Him.

1. God is His Word

John 1:1 tells us that in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God. God did not simply give us words, He gave us Himself, hidden in them. “Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds,” He reminds the people of Israel in Deuteronomy 11:18, “tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.” The words of the Lord are not simply for our amusement or pleasure but for our action: to fix, to tie, to bind upon our hearts, minds, hands, foreheads – they are to be what guides our conscious thought.

I could do much better in feeding on the word of God, not simply snacking on it in my morning Quiet Time, but chewing upon it all throughout the day. He has promised not to leave us alone, but guides us through the multi-faceted genres of the bible - we moan along with David through the Psalms about enemy attacks; we delight in the simplicity of the stories like the parables; we argue along with Paul through His epistles. Paul urges Timothy to preach the word, being prepared in season and out of season (1 Timothy 4:2). We, like Timothy (who I imagine might have been slightly timid to step into Paul’s big shoes!) can be ready with a word at all times, because of God has a word for us at every season.

2. Us and God’s words

If that’s true, then we have a light to guide our steps in this dark, evil world no matter where we are in life. How can we make meditating upon scripture a key part of our routines? I’ve learnt that we can do this in two ways: by speaking, and writing.

To speak

When we speak His word, we receive who we are in Him through daily declarations. I am the light of the world. I am salt of the earth. When I am weak, then I am strong. (If you’re thinking, “I’m not that — I don’t feel like that this morning” — cancel those thoughts. We want to walk with Him, and how can two walk together except they be agreed? (Amos 3:3)

Are we confessing His truth over ourselves? Do we truly believe what God says about us? Or are we replaying tapes from our past over and over? Maybe it’s time that we renewed our mind with His and started to walk according to His words. In Him, we have a new identity: sons and daughters of the most high God. And when we confess what He says about us over ourselves, the enemy has no hold over us.

To write

To remember what God has said to us, we need to write them down. “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets, so that a herald may run with it.” (Habakkuk 2:2) In today’s context, we have different tablets, but we can still write down what God says to us. If not of the authors of the bible who diligently wrotethe words of God, where would we be today? Thank God for the wisdom of Solomon, the letters of Paul, the notes from the four eyewitnesses of Jesus’ ministry that we can know God so richly today.

We can meditate upon God’s words is to write back — like a two-way love letter. John Piper reminds believers that we write, and speak, just as He does, because we are made in His image. Writing helps us to remember what God has said, and also is a platform for us to clearly communicate His messages with others.

Now, it’s Your Turn…

As creative beings made in God’s image, we have the power to bring God’s authority into a situation by what we say and write. This is the privilege we have as children of Christ!

Selah — now stop and think (and write) about that!

Morning meditations

Walking with Jesus, one word at a time.

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    J Hioe

    Written by

    J Hioe

    Morning meditations

    Walking with Jesus, one word at a time.

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