The Living Word

‘In the beginning was the Word … and the Word was God.’ Before anything else existed - God.  At His command creation came to be and is continuing. Stars are still being formed in measureless time and space. “Let there be ...” The Word of God was spoken, and there was, and there is, and there is to come.

To hear the voice of God we must listen. But how can we hear His voice when, in these days, we seem to be drowning in a cacophony of noise? God said, “Be still, and know ...” Our peace lies not in the noise, but in silence. We must draw aside and wait patiently for that still, small voice.

“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” First, we must stop, and then we must silence all other noise; cast from our thoughts everything that is troubling and interfering. God is bigger than these. In worry and stress there’s no room for God. “Be still ...”

We may think we sense His presence struggling to get through the clamour in our minds. This is not God. God doesn’t struggle. Familiar scriptures may come to mind, bubbling up in our brain. We may be confused, hoping and praying that He has heard our cry.

Of one thing we can be certain, He has heard our cry. All our worries don’t suddenly disappear. Our problems are not instantly solved. Our pain does not automatically lift. But we wait, exalting His name, bringing Him to the centre of our lives, confident in His love for us. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” His name is Jesus. Our troubles fade into insignificance as we fall at His feet.

His presence changes everything, but perhaps not immediately. He is the living Word who created life itself, and in Him there is hope. The world is His to command. Where do we put our trust - the Word or the world? The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. Then He returned to the Father, “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth.” When the Spirit connects with the Word, miracles happen.

As we receive the living Word, we must lay down our self-centredness and come to the cross. We recognise that we have died with Him and we live again only through Him. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways ...”

Surrender! Seek His way forward! It’s the only way. In ourselves we can do nothing. It’s not until we surrender ourselves to God that we become alive in Him. Allow Him to do His work, and be amazed at the result. It may not be what we expect. It may not even be what we want, but it will be His way, which is perfect and just. Do we tell the potter how to mould the clay? Jesus said, “Trust in God; trust also in me.”