What Does It Mean that Christ is "The Word"? Names of Christ Advent Series
I'm thrilled to bring you the first of the guest posts that have been contributed for the month of December. The first is from a friend of mine who has a vibrant nationwide ministry (check out her link below!). She wrote this beautiful piece about John 1:14. Christ is the Word. “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” - John 1:14
Red lights cascaded down the highway for miles in front of me, like a never-ending fluorescent candy bracelet — though sweetness it did not offer. Instead, bitter, salty tears flooded my taste buds and stung my cheeks as the chronic pain that had been building all day reached a record peak.
Jesus. Jesus. Jesus. Please help me, Jesus.
I prayed through gasping sobs, but when the relief didn’t come I turned the volume up on my car stereo to try and numb out the pain. After an almost two-hour post-work commute, I finally pulled in the driveway and ran upstairs to my office, where I found my Bible. Not that I was planning to read it. Oh, no. Instead I threw it against the wall. A little backstory for you: In 2015, I was diagnosed with a degenerative connective tissue disorder. When God didn’t heal me at first, I’d like to say I dove deeper into the Word — into my relationship with Jesus — and got better. But I didn’t get better; I got bitter.When my life didn’t turn around and my health worsened, I began to doubt God’s goodness. But worse than that, I lost faith in the Word and Jesus’s ability to save me. I tried to soothe the ache growing inside me by reading and studying the Bible, but none of it felt real. The stories seemed like a distant fairy tale — something only for people who had it all together and not for someone as messed up as me.Eventually, I stopped spending time with Jesus and the Word. And slowly over time, I stopped believing that the salvation, grace and truth found in its pages was meant for me. I watched the world change and move on without me, and with each passing month the “water” in my lungs rose a little higher.
To put it simply, I was drowning.
Maybe you can relate. Maybe you’re in the middle of some pretty raging seas right now. The waves are rising higher and higher above your head and you don’t know if you’re going to make it out of the storm. If that’s you, please learn from the mistakes I’ve made in my faith journey and don’t let go of Jesus. Don’t stop spending time in the Word — which Jesus came and lived out during His 33 years on earth.The enemy would like nothing more than to fill your head with doubts and fears, but Jesus — the Word who became flesh and dwelled among us and died to give us abundant life — wants to strengthen and refine our faith through the trials we face.Just because circumstances aren’t turning out the way you’d hoped they would doesn’t mean that the Word and God’s promises aren’t true for you.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)
The world may seem like a hopeless place, but hope is right in front of us — right in our midst — if we would just have the eyes to seek and find it.Beloved, don’t turn away from the Word and don’t let go of Jesus when oceans rise. Press in, hold on and ask Jesus to deepen your faith as you keep your eyes on Him.He is the Living Word, and He wants to make His home in your heart. Don’t let go. Press into Jesus today. [bctt tweet=""The world may seem like a hopeless place, but hope is right in front of us — right in our midst — if we would just have the eyes to seek and find it." -Lauren Gaskill" username="christcentermom"]
About the Author
Lauren Gaskill is an author, speaker and founder of She Found Joy. Her first book, Into the Deep: Diving Into a Life of Courageous Faith, releases Nov. 6, 2018. Diagnosed with an incurable genetic disorder (Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome), Lauren is passionate about encouraging others to fight for faith and keep hope alive — no matter what. When she’s not writing, Lauren loves to cook, bake and go on hikes with her husband and Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, who is affectionately named Reese after Lauren’s favorite candy, peanut butter cups.