Keiko Shinn | Rediscoveringprayer.com
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
Our identity is continually being fashioned and renewed by every word that comes from the mouth of our heavenly Father. All of creation and everything that sustains it is originated in Christ. In God, we find the true originator, innovator, and creator of life and in Him, we see all its goodness.
I have battled with depression off and on throughout my Christian walk. It’s a battle I hate to admit but I will never forget that one day a few years ago when Jesus’ voice resounded in my heart saying: “The life I give to you is a gift, receive the gift of life.” In that very second, God was ministering to me, giving me a revelation of His great desire to strip away the burden I had placed on my concept of life and time itself. Jesus wants nothing more but to live every minute, of every moment with you. Let the Light of His life come into yours.
God yearns to give the most luxurious and valuable commodity to us and that is: quality time. God gives us His best, He gives us His Son that we may live an abundant life in the here and now. He did not spare His Son but gave Him up so that He could spend the time He gives with us now and for all eternity. Jesus opens His heart to us that we may draw nearer to Him and discover the lengths He would take to be with us.
The depression and anxious thoughts that brand your identity will be stripped away when you invite Jesus into your brokenness. When we call upon Jesus continuously, even when it still hurts, know in your heart, He brings deliverance and healing through His presence, in relationship with you. If God gave you life, will He not give you everything you need to lead a good life? You are born of God, not by human will or by natural descent, but born to receive the gift of Life through every Word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.
His Word is your sustenance, your nourishment. Our body, mind, and spirit must contend to be in alignment with the truth of God’s Word if our faith is to truly overcome in this life. It’s a battle because even though our spirit is willing our flesh can be weak in the midst of either excessive comforts or adversity. What comes out of our mouths says a lot about who we are and what we believe. It’s easier to accept the lies of the evil one and it’s more comfortable to sit back and allow the flow of negative and pessimistic thoughts to have the last say in our lives. But Jesus says:
Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me. Rev. 3:20
He knocks at the door of our hearts daily. Let us seek Him earnestly so that we don’t surrender to second-rate Christianity, confined to the boundaries of mere principles and head knowledge. Let us not submit to cyclical patterns of apathy, doubts, and fear but experience the power and potency of God’s Word to demolish the yolks of a dormant faith. Let the Word of God be your source of life, your daily fire to burn away everything that hinders your faith so that you may trust and receive the gift of Life through a life lived in Christ Jesus.
Prayer: Father, thank you for the gift of life. Thank you that you formed me in my mother’s womb and fashioned me into being that I may live a life worth living. You are the source of my life, my fire, and my motivation to live a life of love, with a fortified hope, and through a living faith. May your Word for my life be my supreme reality and may the fears and anxious thoughts fade as I share my life with you today. Come, I’m expecting you and receive this day as my gift from you. Amen.
Additional verses: Eph. 5:26; Jn. 1:3; Deut. 8:3; Jn. 1:4; Jn. 15:4; Jn. 10:10; Rom. 6:23; Eph. 6:10-11; Matt. 26:41; Rom. 8:32; Jn. 1:38; Matt. 26:26; Lk. 6:45; 2 Cor. 10:5; Heb. 11:6