A Scripture that Changed My Life

It’s normally served with a heaping portion of sarcasm and sass, and topped with a generous roll of the eyes.

“What-EV-er.”

I may or may not have said that word a few times exactly like I described. So it’s kind of funny that God would pick a word with that kind of reputation to change my life. But He did.

I was in a mom’s Bible study when I first heard the term “life verse.” A friend shared that her parents had given her and her siblings a verse to cling to in life and to claim as their very own. As a young mother and a lover of Jesus, my ears perked up immediately. I wanted to do that for my kids, too!

I loved the process of leaning in and letting God lead my husband and me to a special verse that we could give to our kids! But then it occurred to me. Everyone in my family now had a life verse…except me.

I began praying that God would show me a verse that would be applicable and intensely significant to the real me. The real me that He knit together in my mother’s womb. The real me that He fearfully and wonderfully made. The real me that the enemy was regularly trying to redefine through negative self-talk.

I tried out a few verses until one day, He revealed my life verse to me during a Bible study. The verse wasn’t even the focus of the lesson, but there it was, nonetheless. It was one I had read many times, but this time it was different. It was perfectly relevant, and I instantly knew it was mine.

“Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” Philippians 4:8 NIV

“Whatever” took on a brand new meaning for me that day. It was no longer a sarcastic and sassy word. It was sacred.

God knew that I needed help taming and transforming my thoughts. He knew I was listening to lies from the enemy about who I was and who I wasn’t, and that eventually I would believe them. He knew they sent me spiraling down into dark thought dungeons that were practically impossible to climb out of on my own.

Philippians 4:8 became my ladder, and rung-by-rung, God taught me how to climb it. He gave me specific instructions on how to use this verse to do a holy u-turn that would transport me away from the lies and back to a place of truth and refuge, safe in the arms of my Savior.

“Go slow and be thoughtful.” God said. “Use this verse to ask yourself questions about whatever you are thinking about. The answers will lead you to the truth.”

What is true about it?

What is noble about it?

What is right about it?

What is pure about it?

…you get the idea.

It’s unbelievable how well it works; it was as if He had written it just for me! I am no longer captive to these lies for extended periods of time. Hallelujah!

God knew from the beginning of time that we would need His Word not just to survive, but to thrive. He tells us in Jeremiah that before He formed us in our mother’s womb, He knew us. The real us. As our Creator, He had already made provision for us through His Word, long before we even realized we needed it.

Do you have a life verse that you cling to day-to-day? One that helps you fight the battles of life? One that encourages you to persevere? One that guides you in decision-making? One that holds you up in times of doubt? One that equips you to overcome? One that reminds you of who you are in Him?

If you don’t have one yet, today is a good day to ask God to give you one! His Word is timeless and trustworthy. As the Creator of both you and the Word, He is the Perfect One to point you to a verse that will be relevant for a lifetime.