Embrace Faith: God’s Word

Part One

I sit at my desk in our new Georgia home, my eyes continually drawn to the window where I watch a new-to-me-world unfold below. A slow, steady rain continues to fill the back portion of our wooded yard as the runoff of our street flows from every direction, heading toward the retention pond beyond our property – yet within sight.

Dreary as the day is, I’m inspired by the determined spirits of so many birds seeking the soggy seeds from our two feeders. But what fascinates me even more are all the water paths snaking through what was once our pine needle covered ground. 

I’m seeing with my own eyes how flowing water takes the path of least resistance.

Because the ‘natural’ paths in our yard, once created by the physics of gravity and slope, are now impeded by natural and manmade blockades, the water moves in chaotic, inefficient patterns as it looks for a place to deposit itself. As a result, water pools in places unintended for puddles and ponds. The firepit has now been dubbed the mud pit. And my husband chuckles ironically as he says, “I always wanted to live alongside a creek….” 

But the multitude of meandering, messy paths are not without purpose. From my second story office view, we now have a clear idea of two particular places that need to be cleared out so that a more natural drainage flow can relieve the murky mire. The not-realy-creeks, the ones carrying the rainwater of the last two days, have created a map of sorts. Despite the chaos, they’ve given us direction.

God’s Word is no different. Every word of His Word, no matter how unclear or congested it seems at times, is meant to flow into us with purpose. The laws of Leviticus and the names of Numbers move from way up the hill of the past with a slow trickle, picking up speed as the story steepens with God’s promises and the repeated patterns of the Israelites’ unfaithfulness and God’s forgiveness. 

Winding through every field of family disasters and holy redemptions, the water of God’s Word gathers steam as it seeks to quench and strengthen its people. It pools in the valleys of death and destruction, making it look more like the Dead Sea than Living Water – until, suddenly, salvation arrives and the water of the Word flows yet again. 

Over and over the stories of Scripture point us to God – to the Word of God, to Jesus Himself – until we at last hear the crash of a waterfall announcing a new season, introducing a new covenant. The splash of the Jordan River as Jesus rises from its waters awakens us to a new reality of God With Us, the Word Made Flesh. And we watch with genuine wonder as this Word, who is the Living Water, winds Himself throughout the Holy Land, pouring Himself into people, restoring bodies and minds, hearts and souls. With the Word among us, the water flows unhindered and miracles burst forth wherever He goes – that is, until the cross is raised and the water puddles at the foot of it, puzzled as to which way it should go. 

Yet Death could not stop the Living Water. The Word rose from the grave and ascended to heaven, sending His Spirit to dwell in His believers, inspiring His followers to put into words all of the words ever uttered by the Word. So that now, as we make our way through the muck that is so often our lives, we can read and receive the Word, giving It space to do a work in us. 

And we’ll watch in utter amazement as It opens new pathways within us, moving through our bodies and minds, hearts and souls unhindered. The Living Water in us opens up the blockades erected by sinful choices and a lifetime of hardships, making way for the water of the Word to flow into the crevices it was always meant to – our broken places and walled up deadends. It washes us clean and clears out the underbrush of doubt and shame. 

Why does God’s Word flow in such a way? 

So that we can know Him better.

Part Two

In one spot at the edge of our property, fallen trees and piled leaves keep the water from flowing into the basin it’s meant to fill on rainy days. In another place, the previous owners erected a dirt-ramp right on the edge of the retention pond – which made for great fun for the dirt bike riders on summer, sunny days, but more like a dam on days like today.

What causes blockades in our hearts and minds and souls, keeping the Living Water – the Word of God – from flowing through our lives?

Striving. The way we come to Scripture with to do lists and checkboxes can elicit within us a sense of ‘have to’. And can become the source of much pride or shame, both of which are dependent on us getting the lists completed and the boxes checked. When motivated by a striving toward achievement or a guilty conscience, we miss the mark of what God intended when He gave us His Word.

Doubt. When we look at the Bible as a how-to-live-life book or a list of rules to follow, we can become overly confident in ourselves to do everything necessary to be ‘godly’. We adopt an “I can do it” attitude. Only, when we fail to follow the rules, doubt about who we are creeps in. We take on the labels of ‘failure’ or ‘unworthy’ or worse. On the other hand, we might obey every rule we read in the Bible, and bad things still happen to us – so our doubt in God takes root because we approached the Word transactionally. As a result, we doubt God does what He says and who He is.

Cynicism. In the seasons when we pray to God, and they fail to be answered the way we expect, disappointment can set in. The doubt we hold about God and His Word can spiral into cynicism. We adopt the always-and-never outlook about Scripture and the One who has given it to us, believing that “He always lets me down;” “the Bible can never be trusted.” And a hopelessness about it all keeps the Word from flowing in us.

Striving, doubt, and cynicism are not the only blockades for the truth of the Word, but they are big ones. Underlying all of them are the same two blockades I witness in my watery backyard – those that are man made, as well as the natural effects of living in a fallen world.

In other words, blockades are sometimes our own fault. We erect Word-stopping walls when we strive to achieve so we can feel good about ourselves or allow failures to define us and God or give-in to disappointment’s temptation to give-up – to name a few. 

But, other times, the littered pathways that divert the Living Water within us have built up over our lifetimes – sickness, divorce, injury, natural disaster, genetics, mental health, abuse, neglect, etc. Limb by limb, leaf by leaf, the piles grow until the water can no longer flow.

So when we recognize within ourselves the lack of desire to open God’s Word – that hunger to ingest It, to give It room to do its work in us, to allow It to point us to God – then we know it’s time to ask the Holy Spirit to help us identify the blockades in our bodies and minds, our hearts and souls. 

It’s time to ask the Spirit to help us want more of the Word.

Part Three

Filling ourselves with the Word of God is, first and foremost, to seek God. 
Not answers. Not rules. Not history. Not knowledge or understanding.

God.

I’ve done several Bible studies by teachers who have insisted that everything we read in Scripture should be done so with humility¹ and with the intention of getting to know God better.² To read the Word any other way is to risk consuming it for all the wrong reasons. 

For the Living Water of God’s Word to fill and flow within us, the work of removing the blockades must be attended to – every day, in every season. Otherwise we risk either becoming indifferent to Scripture or putting so much emphasis on it that we worship the book instead of the Word, Jesus Christ.³ 

Scripture is most certainly meant to be foundational in our lives of faith. But it’s not to be elevated over God. It’s also not to be ignored or conquered, nor is it to become a weapon or a source of shame. 

It is, however, meant to be marveled at. Beheld.⁴ Ingested.⁵ Even revered to the point of trembling as it is read or heard⁶ – because it is holy. Because it is God’s Word, our authority.³ Because it points us to Jesus.⁴ 

It’s God’s desire that His Word would point us to Him so we can get to know Him as He really is – so that our trust in Him will grow. And as our trust in Him expands, so will our faith and hearts and our human capacities to love and serve, to forgive and give away. 

As such, we become streams for the Word to flow from on High to the world; in doing so, our Word-filled waters carry life to people in our path. 

Friends, receiving the water of God’s Word brings to us wholeness and holiness. Such lifegiving water settles within us and searches for places to go – outward, like a tributary. No longer the stagnant, unmoving Dead Sea, we are opened, given an outlet for the water of the Word to flow into new places – places they were always meant to go.

Father God, we marvel at the way Scripture is YOUR story and how it constantly points us back to YOU. We ask forgiveness for the ways we’ve made your Word about us, for the ways we’ve let the blockades in our hearts and minds and souls dictate how your Living Water flows within us. Lord Jesus, in this moment we ask that You would intercede for us in such a way that we would begin to desire more of God. Give us a hunger for more of His Word, blessing us with soft hearts that receive the words and the Word. We recognize that in God’s supernatural way YOU ARE the Word of God – that somehow God takes what He speaks and shapes them into written words so that everything that flows from His mouth creates and heals and redeems. One spoken word, and the old becomes new. Even as we read the written words, we are transformed! And, then, somehow God’s Word becomes flesh – becomes YOU. You are the “place where the Word of God and person of God are revealed in perfect union.”⁴ Oh, that we would sit with that truth and give it space to open new paths within us. Holy Spirit, speak to us. Help us to see the blockades within us that keep the Word of God from flowing in and through us. Help us to be willing to engage in the processes of removing each limb, each rock, and every leaf so that the way is made for God’s Word to flow freely within us – and out to those around us. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.
(inspired by 2 Timothy 3:16; John 5:39-40; John 7:38; Hebrews 7:25; Matthew 5:6; Psalm 42:1-2; Ezekiel 11:19–20; John 1:1,14; Matthew 4:4; Psalm 107:20; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Romans 12:2; Romans 8:26; Hebrews 4:14)

Resources: I love sharing with you the books, podcasts, articles, and anything else that has inspired, encouraged, or taught me. These are humble offerings with no expectations.

• 1 – Each day of study in a Well Watered Woman workbook opens with the call to pray for humility and insight before reading God’s Word. XOXO
• 2 – Jen Wilkin, for instance, is one Bible teacher who consistently makes knowing God the main goal of all her studies – to the point that she offers a list of God’s attributes in the appendix to aid in identifying His goodness, faithfulness, omniscience, or transcendence (for examples) as we read Scripture.
• 3 – See John 5:39–40 and the 1/6/22 Wake Up Call. Hear this quote from JD Walt, “We do not worship a book, and yet without this book, we know next to nothing about the God we do worship.” And this one, “We would not know Jesus without the Bible, and yet we cannot understand the Bible apart from Jesus, and so with him, the Scriptures begin and end.” So good!
• 4 – 1/14/22 Wake Up Call – more quotes, “Jesus is the place where the Word of God and person of God are revealed in perfect union.” And this doozy, “We feast on these words… ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ But remember, this is not bread you can make or make happen. It is the bread of Heaven. There is no recipe—only Revelation. This is the real Wonder Bread.” 😀
• 5 – Jeremiah 15:16
• 6 – Isaiah 66:2
• More great verses:
  • “God means what he says. What he says goes. His powerful Word is sharp as a surgeon’s scalpel, cutting through everything, whether doubt or defense, laying us open to listen and obey.” (Hebrews 4:12 MSG)
  • “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” (Isaiah 40:8)
• I thought you might like “The Bible Creed,” also from 1/6/25 Wake Up Call, written by JD Walt
  
  I believe in the living Word of God,
  who is the Son of God, Jesus Christ.
  
  And I believe in the written Word of God, the Bible,
  the Holy Spirit–inspired authority of the people of God.
  
  God’s Word endures forever,
  is sweeter than honey,
  more precious than gold,
  sharper than a double-edged sword,
  judging the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
  
  This Word is perfect, trustworthy, right,
  radiant, pure, firm, and flawless.
  It refreshes the soul,
  makes wise the simple,
  gives joy to the heart,
  is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
  
  God’s Word teaches, corrects, rebukes, and trains.
  It cleanses and prunes, feeds and nourishes,
  is purposeful and powerful.
  It burns like a fire in my bones.
  It always accomplishes the purposes for which it is sent.
  
  God’s Word will be on my heart,
  on my gate, on my doorpost.
  I will talk about it when I lie down and
  when I wake up and when I walk along the road.
  On it I will meditate day and night, as I hide it in my heart. 
  I will build my life on the rock of God’s Word.
  Indeed, “the grass withers and the flowers fall,
  but the word of our God endures forever.”
  
  It will be the first Word.
  It will be the last Word.
  This is God’s Word.
  
• The Word is our Foundation and Truth and Life. Sara Groves’ song, “The Word,” on our Embrace Faith playlist speaks of God’s Word as what WAS, IS, and WILL BE… “The Word I need is the Word that was, who put on flesh to dwell with us.” So good. It’s such a mind-blower, isn’t it, trying to reconcile words as Word as Word Made Flesh. It’s all of that, all at once — and so much more!
• The Abiding Life Newsletter is one way we continue the conversations about embracing faith and abiding in Christ. And it was late — again. But the “Move Edition” has finally hit inboxes and my page on Substack.

Rhythms: As my newsletter’s title infers, we seek to develop an abiding life in this space — a place where we can get informed but even more so be transformed as we learn to abide in God’s presence throughout our days. I like to think that developing rhythms is what aids us in our desire and ability to become more Christlike.

As we shall dive further into next week, the Word and Spirit go together. Anyone can open the Bible, but without the Spirit’s help, the words and ways of God make no sense (1 Corinthians 2:14). I think that’s how we so easily slip into self-help and striving or self-hate and cynicism. We’ve left the Spirit behind. Friends, our rhythms must include Word AND Spirit. Pray before you read the Bible. Worship in the Spirit when something in Scripture causes you to struggle. Ask the Holy Spirit to be your guide through rivers of Living Water. XOXO

• Finally, as a community, let us not neglect sharing God’s amazing grace with others! Share your God-stories with people around you. Share this site. Share God’s Word. Shine His light into the world!

Featured Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash. “All the Bits and Pieces” photo by Sahand Babali on Unsplash.
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