The Word of God

I think it's Alistair Begg's church that has the statement on their bulletin:  "You have exalted above all things your name and your word," from Psalm 138:2.  I know that's true. I know it is powerful, sharper than any two edged sword. It is light. It is truth. It is life. Yet...there's this unbelieving part of my heart that questions the power of the Word.  It shows in how little I include God's Word in my prayers, conversations, thoughts.  I've been confronted lately with my own unbelief. I've also seen the opposite.  We meet weekly with people from our Bible Study group, Ed with the men and I with the women. Last week we were reading an article by Phillip Yancy, quotes by Tozer, Lewis, Wesley, and Grudem.  I underlined parts of all of them and was struck by their reflections and applications. Then, my friend Monica said, "I like reading what others have to say. I think it's helpful. But the Word of God is what changes hearts."  Wow!  You have to realize that Monica wasn't a believer 2 years ago, had never read God's Word, and certainly didn't know it's power. For her to know and then quote, "Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God," is evidence of God's work in her heart.   

A few weeks ago, my friend Angela came over to visit. We drank tea and talked about what she's been reading in Luke. She liked how Jesus talked about loving the poor, lame, blind. I asked her if she thought in our culture the gypsies would be included in those Jesus commanded us to love. She thought for a second and said, "Maybe."  That's a stretch for a Romanian who has been taught from birth that gypsies are beneath them.  They are liars, thieves, dirty, and uneducated.  And they can't be changed.  That's another story in itself: the gypsy culture. So,  that somehow led us to the subject of life under communism. She told me stories about waiting in line for soap and making it from pig fat when there was none.  Can you imagine that smell?!  She described what it was like in high school when every fall, all students, employees, and families were required to harvest the crops on the collective farms. She was grateful that her crop was corn and not potatoes. That was the worst, especially on the back.  They got to keep nothing and except what they could hide in their pockets, and worked for 3-4 weeks to bring in the harvest for the government.  She said that Ceaucescu asked each city head for the bushel count. They always lied. If it was 200 bushels, they said 300. Then Ceaucescu told them to bring in 500 the next year. I asked how that was possible. She said, "It wasn't. They lied every year to make themselves look better. Ceaucescu didn't really believe them, either, it just made him look good, so he went along with it."  A culture of deceit and deceit rewarded. 

 It's really hard for my American mind to imagine what they experienced, but listening to their stories helps me understand them. I asked lots of questions and she answered for about an hour. Finally, Angela said, "That's enough. I like talking about the Bible much more than Ceaucescu."  

We walked in the park yesterday, Angela and I, and stopped to eat some pastries that she bought. It was a beautiful sunny day, perfect for an outside visit. We sat, ate, talked, watched the kids on the playground. Then she pulled out her New Testament from her pocket and started asking questions about Luke. (She really likes that book.) I sat there, thanking God, that this dear friend of mine who had never really read the Bible until a few months ago, is hungry for it.  

"May the Word of God dwell richly in my heart from hour to hour. So that all may see I triumph only through His power."