But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’” Matthew 4:4
Every. Word. That’s good news because there’s only so much bread can do.
We can try and manage all day, and that’s good. We can do things on our own energy which, of course, God provides with absolute amazing grace. But the more we depend on His Word in scripture and the impact that the power His words have on our lives, the more we live in a way we really want—whole, alive, free, at peace.
It means we don’t have to worry about anything. We may have our times of concern, but we are not without help and we don’t have to succumb to complete worry as if all is on our own shoulders.
Isaiah 55:10-11 says,
As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, 11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.
What we say makes a difference. Even more important, what God says makes all the difference. His words are game changers. Most assuredly our words have power. We are reminded to consider what comes out of our mouths, but we must make certain we are not missing the power of God’s words. When we take time to be encouraged by turning to God in prayer and the Bible, we remember that He is God and we are not – that He has our needs in His heart before we ourselves know our own needs.
He knows we rely on Him to be true to what He says. When we can turn to Him and how His Word describes who He is, we get to know Him as Provider, Truth, and Faithful. We begin acting on that knowledge. We worry and fret less. We start turning to Him at first signs of trouble. This is where His way of peace comes and our doubts get cleared out.
We then notice how His Word is completely true not because we would like it to be, but because He once again has proven Himself to be the God He claims He is.
We find that while we eat bread as people, and live, we live for real because of a loving God who can be trusted. We say all kinds of things with good intentions. God has said all kinds of things and has kept every promise He’s ever made.
What if things around us were all we had? Bread and other things. Thankfully the resources around us are not all we have. Our own devices are not all we have. A God that receives us when we come to Him is what we have. That is the power of the words He has said about Himself and what He says we mean to Him as His human creation.
Even if it’s tough some days, try turning to God’s Word. Even if you don’t know where to look, ask Him and He will show you in a way only He can. He knows how you learn because He made you. He knows what to say to show you the best solution that will help.
He can be trusted. Every word.
