The Necessity of the Living Word

Our God is a living God, not a dead one, or even a once-living God. And when we hear that scripture, God's Word, is living (not to mention sometimes a bit prickly) just like this God we profess to believe in, it must cause us to truly ponder its power. These words, we believe, are not like other words.

Not at all.

It’s amazing how at times, when we’re struggling against the tide of life's sufferings, that scripture can truly become for us a source of truth and comfort. It’s in this way that scripture can be living for us. In the past I have found myself in a familiar struggle. It’s that uneasy, anxious and frustrated feeling. It can cause me to get caught in the trap of questioning decisions I’ve made in life. Did I make a mistake choosing this career? Have I been selfish and unreasonable with my relationships? Am I really walking a path that’ll lead me to joy and peace? At those times I feel stagnant—striving to “seek first the kingdom of God” hadn’t really panned out exactly as I expected, I think. I can become doubtful of God’s loving care. It’s something that most of us are probably familiar with. Sometimes it just feels like God isn’t speaking. This is why discerning God’s call can often times be so frustrating for me. How will I know if God is calling me? How can I be sure that I’m going to make good decisions in life and that I’m on the right path?

It is in the midst of these thoughts, fears and doubts that I have to turn to the living Word. It reminds me that God does communicate with us; it gently reinforces that he does provide direction in our lives. He just doesn’t provide the direction all at once, only in pieces. He only gives us enough to get through the moment we find ourselves in. In a chapter from Matthew in the Gospel, narrating the trip that the Magi make to pay homage to Jesus, the Magi aren’t told where Jesus is born; the star “preceded them, until it came and stopped over the place.” God slowly guided them each step of the way, revealing the final destination only when they were close enough and actually needed to know it. And then we see God’s concern again when later on the Magi are warned in a dream not to return to Herod. This dream-warning theme continues as Joseph is told on multiple occasions where and when to go with Mary and Jesus to avoid danger. God doesn’t tell Joseph everything at once, but only what he needs to know and when he needs to know it. I know it’s something we’ve all heard hundreds of times, but it communicates this to me in a way I need to hear it—through this story.

This isn’t necessary some profound revelation, but this particular instance in scripture, like many others, can carry me through moments of doubt. It can provide a bit of gentle encouragement to help refresh me on my journey with Christ. It reminds me that God will let me know what he wants of me when it’s time (though I doubt he’ll have one of his angels speak to me in a dream…), but for right now I just need to be present in the moment. Instead of looking for direction, I need to live in the now. It reminds me that scripture is living: it does speak to us each individually in a special way when we need it.

Scripture not only serves to comfort us and remind us of God’s ways, but I’ve found that it also reveals where God is present and working. Scripture reminds me that God is active, moving within and among the flesh of others in my life. I am reminded of this from a short verse below that offered tremendous, grace-filled insight.

“When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith.” Mt. 8:10

I am fascinated with Christ’s amazement of the centurion’s faith. How can God, the creator of all things, be amazed by this man’s faith? What power must our faith have in the eyes of God to cause him amazement? And how can I possibly achieve that type of God-amazing faith? I’m not sure, but it tells me something about how precious our faith must be to God.

This passage also reminds me of an experience I had a few years back when I was home for Thanksgiving. I had the opportunity to spend time with my grandma who had recently become very ill. She was suffering greatly. At that time doctors weren’t sure what was wrong with her, but she was extremely dizzy, nauseous and her blood pressure was very high. She had been in this condition for about four weeks and there was no foreseeable end in sight. She could only eat soup and soft foods that required minimal chewing. Speaking caused her incredible discomfort and pain. She couldn’t eat, talk or move without suffering and no one could help her. She could do very little but simply rest and breath; yet every night I saw her reach for her rosary and whisper the prayers to herself with every ounce of energy she had. The amount of pain it caused her to shift her body and quietly whisper her prayers—and I know it must have been great—was not enough to keep her from expressing her trust in God and faith in his love.

It is this image that comes to my mind when I read this passage about the centurion. When I saw my grandmother’s incredible and discrete act of love I received a small glimpse of the light Christ is speaking about: the light that “must shine before others”. It was this tremendous act of faith she displayed that left me in awe of Christ’s presence. It was the type of faith I believe Christ was speaking of when he praised this centurion from Capernaum. I read a quote from a Bishop once that said (and I’m paraphrasing) faith must be lived in such a way that if God didn’t exist our lives wouldn’t make sense. This is the type of faith that welcomes sacrifice for the sake of love. Against every physical strand in her body begging her to remain still, she reached for her rosary and prayed in faith despite the suffering it caused her. This was the type of faith that can’t be simply learned—it has to be built through a lifetime of overcoming many trials and struggles with the help and love of Christ. The memory of my grandmother is a light for me. It’s her example that encourages me to seek Christ. It encourages me to acquire the one thing that is more precious than gold—the thing that causes even the Son of God to marvel.

These are only two instances of how scripture has brought me closer to God. Like the limitless love and mercy of God, scripture can speak to us in an infinite number of ways. The point is that God does speak through scripture if we listen. Scripture is necessary in our spiritual life. It provides encouragement and direction as we seek to answer God’s call in our lives and accept our belovedness as his children. It never fails to point to his loving presence in our lives and the lives of others.

Let us never forget to seek God through the gift of the Word as we respond to his call of love and journey together back to the House of the Father.