11 Feb How Does God’s Word Sustain Us?

“Jesus answered, ‘It is written: “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”’ – Matthew 4:4 NIV

Yesterday I went for an afternoon run, but midway through, my blood sugar dropped, and I felt extremely weak, so much so that I had to ask my husband to come and fetch me. When I considered what I had consumed during the day, I realised that I had not eaten properly and had hardly drunk any water. I have always liked to use my runs to connect with Jesus and while running, meditate on the analogy that running is very much like our faith journey. While I had prayed before starting my run, the fact that I had not provided my body with the right sustenance meant that while Jesus is with me and may undoubtedly give me strength when I need it, he taught me a valuable lesson to properly take care of my body.

Considering the running and faith journey analogy, I realised He might have also been pointing out to how recently, I was engaging very little with the Word. I have been going through a tiring time due to work and my daughter’s sleep regression and I’ve been resorting to shotgun prayers in the morning, during challenges in the day and before going to sleep as the sum of my time with Him. Yesterday’s incident made me understand that just as we can become physically weak in our exercise when we have not sustained our bodies adequately, we can also become spiritually weak in our faith when we have not sustained our souls through God’s Word, and therefore, Him.

God’s Word helps us know Him better

We love our friends and partners because of who they are, their personality traits, their passions and their interests, and this is how we deepen our love for God too. Some of the verses I love most are those that pertain to God’s delights, such as music: “…in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.” (Zephaniah 3: 17 NIV), nature, “See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.” (Matthew 6: 28-29 NIV) and even food, “…burn the fat as an aroma pleasing to the Lord.” (Leviticus: 17:6 NIV). There are many other examples of God’s delights, but most prominent are His love of justice, righteousness and kindness, and reminding ourselves of this regularly helps us to live righteously which brings us closer to Him, while also giving us courage and faith.

When we are frustrated by the wrongdoing of the world, and how it sometimes seems like the greedy and corrupt win over the honest and generous, the Word reminds us that we serve a God of justice who hates greed and corruption, who vindicates the poor and humble, “‘Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength or the rich boast of their riches, but let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know me, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,’ declares the Lord.” – Jeremiah 9:23-24 NIV

When we are feeling unworthy or inadequate, the Word reminds us of His patience, His mercy, and His grace which indicate His love for us. If we need proof of this love, we need only read the accounts of His endless patience with Israel in the Old Testament, and His great sacrifice on the cross in the New Testament, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” – Romans 5:8 NIV. Knowing God’s character and His love for us is so important when it comes to sustaining our faith. If I continuously remind myself of who God is and how He loves me, more and more that truth will entrench itself in my heart and strengthen my faith.

God’s Word gives us Guidance

“Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Psalm 119: 105 NIV

For every decision we make in life, we can turn to the Word. It may not hold instructions that refer to the exact circumstances that we face, but there are guiding principles which we can apply. If our heart’s intention is to obey God by following His Word, we can feel peace knowing that He is pleased in our desire to obey Him. We therefore have assurance that regardless of the decision we end up making, when we follow His principles in how we live and approach decisions with obedient hearts, He will work all things for our good, even the wrong decisions.

This means that we need to know and understand the Bible. There are times when I may choose a verse to meditate and memorise — Psalm 46: 10 is a firm favourite that has seen me through many a challenge — but sometimes God’s principles are revealed through longer passages outlining scenarios where biblical figures make decisions that are either obedient or disobedient, while other passages are more instructive such as Paul’s letters. Whatever it may be, an understanding of the context is vital for us to take from the passage the correct principle. This is where study bibles are extremely handy. If you don’t have one, we are blessed with the endless resource of Google, but a first point of call would be to ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you the passage’s meaning. Once we understand that context, we can apply it to our own lives.

God’s Word protects us

“Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” – Ephesians 6:17 NIV

There are many things in this world that distract us and many ideologies that we may feel tempted or even compelled to accept or follow because they seem innocent and make sense on the surface, but many are often distractions from God and our relationship with Him, which is why it so important for us to frequently fortify ourselves with His truth through His Word.

However, the enemy also uses other ploys to pull us away from God through our own internal struggles. Nowhere do I personally hear harsher words than the words I sometimes speak over myself, and often these harsh words our spoken when I’m not engaged with the Word. For it would not be possible to speak hateful words over myself if have just read how precious I am to God, “… I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”  (Psalm 139:14) Sometimes, however, our internal struggles are caused by the enemy in making us believe that we are doing something for God’s glory, but the intentions deep down are more self-serving. This I where the Word also helps us to examine our hearts and reveal the truth to us, “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”  Hebrews 4:12 NIV

All of this is to protect us from straying away from God, because when we are not close to Him, we are vulnerable to the enemy who attacks us mostly through temptations, then guilt and shame, which often causes isolation from God’s family. The closer we are to God’s truth through His word, the closer our proximity to His heart, and therefore we remain more fortified and sustained to face life’s challenges knowing that God and His truth are right by our side.