“By your word, I can see where I’m going; they throw a beam of light on my dark path.”
God is always speaking – whispering his secrets, writing tales of love and grace across the earth, painting hope and wonder through the skies, and weaving wisdom and knowledge into our lives.
He speaks through nature, friends, a comforting embrace, a challenging article, a playground bully, a beautiful movie, a complex novel, a stand-up comedian, a late night conversation, music, scripture, our children, strangers, neighbors…
He speaks to us through it all. Are you listening?
On Amy Grant's album “Straight Ahead” (anyone? I grew up a PK…) was a song she co-wrote with Michael W. Smith (I think) called, “Thy Word.” The chorus contains the words from Ps 119:105, and I used to belt it out at the top of my lungs:
“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet
And a light unto my path.”
(anyone relate? *high five*).
Whenever I needed direction, wisdom or any kind of help, I would head to my Bible and search the pages looking for it (even do the good old ‘flick and pick'). After all, “His word” is the lamp and light, right?
Right.
“If we recognize that the Divine's words are not just words, but light and spirit and energy and the power of life itself, then they have the power to light our way.”
Powerful, two minute reads that have helped change the script in thousands of people's lives.
But so are the songs on that Amy Grant album that I used to sing uncomfortably loud (for everyone listening) to, and the conversations I’d have with my mother, and the wind blowing on my face at the beach, and the kids laughing at the park as I read, and the book that I'm reading, the movie I've just watched, the symphony playing at the Opera House, the storm raining down on my roof – they all carry the words of God.
The word of God is more than pen on paper. God is in and through all things. If all we look to are our two-dimensional interpretations of an ancient text written by people whose culture and context we couldn’t be bothered to study, then who knows where we’ll end up.
CH Spurgeon wrote, “In his earliest days, while keeping his father’s flock, [David] had devoted himself to the study of God’s two great books—nature and Scripture; and he had so thoroughly entered into the spirit of these two only volumes in his library that he was able with a devout criticism to compare and contrast them, magnifying the excellency of the Author as seen in both. He is wisest who reads both the world-book, and the Word-book as two volumes of the same work, and feels concerning them, “My Father wrote them both.””
If we listen to the word of God: his words, his prophetic and eternal voice that is behind and beneath everything that is happening around us; if we pay attention to what is going on beneath the surface of this reality marred by greed and hate and pain; if we could be bothered to admit that us western modernists could learn a thing or two (or hundreds) from our ancient Hebrew faith fathers and listen with open hearts rather than an assumed end already in mind; if we can be present enough in this moment to see it for it what it really is; then perhaps we might hear something divine.
This beautiful book, the extraordinary collection of stories that is sacred to all who call upon the Divine, is lived out through our lives. It’s not static or rigid, but alive and moving. It’s ready to breathe into our lives ancient wisdom that carries hope for the here and now. Marry the text to the world around us through prayer and worship, to our hearts through meditation and devotion, to our minds through faith and discipline.
Don’t neglect the context and culture from which it was written, and take care to notice its narrative and trajectory.
And then when God speaks, as he continually does, all around us and in us, if we look and listen, tune our ears, pay attention and be present enough to hear and see him.
If we recognize that the Divine's words are not just words, but light and spirit and energy and the power of life itself, then they have the power to light our way.
And who knows where we’ll end up.
“By your word, I can see where I’m going;
they throw a beam of light on my dark path.”
Ps 119:105 (MSG).
Written by Liz Milani
Absolutely and truly . . . beautiful. ““In his earliest days, while keeping his father’s flock, [David] had devoted himself to the study of God’s two great books—nature and Scripture; and he had so thoroughly entered into the spirit of these two only volumes in his library that he was able with a devout criticism to compare and contrast them, magnifying the excellency of the Author as seen in both.”
Oh, I can so relate, happily 🙂 Thank you.
Haha and so can we! Much love to ya Jim…
(PS – loving your photos on Instagram!)
Thanks for reading Jim! Love that you can “happily relate” – I think we'd get along so well in person!
Much love and many thanks to you mate.
Jesse
God is always speaking – whispering his secrets, writing tales of love and grace across the earth, painting hope and wonder through the skies, and weaving wisdom and knowledge into our lives.
He speaks through nature, friends, a comforting embrace, a challenging article, a playground bully, a beautiful movie, a complex novel, a stand-up comedian, a late night conversation, music, scripture, our children, strangers, neighbors…
Oh, how true this is. All around me, every day, God speaks so many different ways. And amazingly how he sends messages to me through my dogs. Messages like, hey, slow down. Look at me. I am here for you.
Thank you for sharing every day.
I LOVE that Allen! God totally speaks to you through your dogs and your relationship with them. I love that you can see God there. Thank you for your kind words. Liz.