Today, my friend Kim Miller contributes a delightful thought about transformation. More about Kim:
Kim Miller. When she’s not writing, Kim enjoys line dancing with her husband in their living room, going on worm hunts with her grandsons, walking with friends around a nearby lake, reading cozy mysteries too late into the night, and savoring the goodness of God at local coffee shops with sisters in Christ. You can follow her on her website, YouTube channel, or Instagram.
I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope . . .
Psalm 130:5 ESV
The brilliant winter sun bends its beams through the woods where I walk. With each step, my feet crunch through last summer’s lushness now piled on the forest floor. I dream of days when yellow flowers will once again sprinkle the ground at my feet–when purple wisteria will drape across the trees by my parents’ cabin–when vibrant swallowtails flutter over the hill. For now, long shadows, brown tree trunks, dead leaves, and the occasional deer paint a sepia landscape in every direction I turn.
In a few weeks, these sunbeams that slant through the woods will straighten, intensify, and send radiant energy into the dormant world around me. Eventually, green buds will push through the ends of each limb until leaves unfold and spread a canopy to shade my path. The forest will illuminate in vibrant colors of life once more.
Icy air stings my throat, and I pause to consider. This forest is not dead. It is very much alive. The monochromatic scene belies the force of life pulsing in each tree. Yes, life is here. And it is working. Slowly. Faithfully.
When we memorize God’s word, our lives may feel much like the forest in the bleakest of winter. The stillness of committing his word to memory may lack visible fruit and may even feel cold and monochrome. But the substance of his word stores new life in our thoughts and emotions. As we slowly and faithfully tuck his word into our hearts and connect with the person of Jesus, our inner beings come alive with his vibrancy. Before we know it, our moments will pulse with his life-giving word, even in the most mundane moments of daily life.
PS Would you consider joining me on an adventure that could change your life? Sign up here to receive my weekly newsletter with video reels, encouragement, and other practical resources to assist you in memorizing the Sermon on the Mount. Yes, the whole thing. All three chapters. I know it sounds impossible. But one day at a time, we can memorize this sermon that paints the picture of a vibrant life transformed by Jesus.
