I first heard about life verses in my early 30s. During my prayer time, I began asking the Lord for a personal life verse. I can’t remember in what context I discovered Jeremiah 33:3. Perhaps it was during a Bible study or when I was looking something up. I do know there didn’t seem to be anything unusual or supernatural about the way I found it, but when I read it, something in me connected with it and I knew that was my life verse. “Call to Me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things which you do not yet know“ (Jeremiah 33:3).
The words spoke of an adventurous future, layers of revelation, and a deepening connection with God. I had no clue what exactly He would reveal to me, but, to be honest, anything He had to share would be a new revelation for me.
In hindsight, my life verse has really been my life vest. With each revelation of who He is and who He said I am, I moved from a religious, legalistic way of viewing God to seeing Him through grace and mercy, eventually moving into an intimate, loving relationship with Him. Now, in the latter 50s, I’ve lost count of the things He’s shown me. He has consistently shed light and revelation into many significant areas. I look back over my life, and I see His presence in every phase.
I’ve talked openly about my childhood and how I describe it as being a time when I had nowhere solid to plant my feet. Maybe you can relate. I’m at that age now where I can look back and see God’s hand on me. I can see where I went astray and at what point I came back. I realize that He never left me and that, even when I was running away, He was always making a way, opening doors, creating connections. His Word says He will never leave us nor forsake us, and I cannot find even one single moment when He was not with me.
While growing up in my inconsistent household, never knowing what the day would require, God gave me an underlying strength and understanding that what was happening was not right. This encouraged me to hold on, believing there were better days ahead.
At 18, after my mom kicked me out, I left God behind. Don’t ask me why, because I still don’t have a good answer. He’d been so kind and comforting through all the crazy in my home, so it makes no sense that I forgot about Him when I needed Him the most. Nonetheless, when I left home, I left God.
My dad, who had been missing in action for the majority of my childhood, was the one who came to pick me up at my mom’s house. I sat on the tiny square porch waiting for him, a couple of bags of clothes at my feet. I left everything else behind. I didn’t think mom would let me come back to get anything left, and I never asked. Those bags and a job were all I had. In truth, I still had God, even though I didn’t give Him much thought as soon as I left my mother’s driveway.
I lived with my dad and his wife for almost a month, so I could find a place to live, a roommate, and a car. Dad may have been motivated to get me out of his house as soon as possible, but he was also a practical man in that he wasn’t into handouts. While my dad may not have been the most reliable or dependable, he was always kind, and he contacted a few people he knew.
One guy helped me buy an older used car despite having no credit history and having been at my job less than a year. I was able to get a loan in my name, with no down payment, and an affordable monthly payment of $100/month.
There are always pros and cons. The con was that it was a grandma car. Rusty brown, four-door, family-looking car. I’m pretty sure the salesman said, “This belonged to a little old lady, and she only drove it to church on Sundays.” But I was in no position to complain. The pro was that the taste of freedom overrode the appearance.
Another of my dad’s friends sold furniture and approved a loan for bedroom furniture. My dad’s thinking was that a good night’s sleep made you a good employee and therefore ensured a paycheck. I didn’t turn down the offer to have a place to rest my head and call my own.
I can’t remember how I found my roommate. She was the older sister of a friend I went to high school with. I wasn’t living in the area that I graduated from anymore. We didn’t have cell phones and weren’t able to stay in touch on a regular basis. Still, I somehow ran into her sister, and we agreed to be roommates.
God met my practical needs by putting a job in place before I got kicked out of my house, then providing a car and a place to rest. Making sure I had a safe place to live and a roommate who was not a stranger spoke of His faithfulness.
This is a time when I didn’t know what a life verse was. None-the-less, Christ who is the Living Word was revealing Himself through my life verse even though I didn’t realize it yet.
As I look back, God pursued and provided for me even though I wasn’t spending much time with Him anymore. I’d whisper a prayer about something I needed but never slowed down enough to say thank You. I didn’t spend time with Him nor was I reading His Word like I used to, but I’ve learned that God’s faithfulness is not determined by ours. Nor does our goodness dictate God’s goodness.
I walk in deep revelation, an intimate relationship with Christ, not because I’ve always made good decisions. Not because I haven’t made mistakes or poor choices. I walk in the freedom that He gives, and His grace covers me mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. The God of the Holy Bible is in the business of revealing great and amazing things. He desires to show us His love, grace, mercy, and unfathomable forgiveness.
Spend sometime with God and ask Him to show you scripture, a life verse that you can watch Him reveal Himself though. Growing in deeper knowledge of who He is to you and therefore strengthening your identity in Him.
My freedom is not (wo)man-made. It’s given to me and is present in my life because the Son of God is powerful enough to make me righteous, blameless, and new through His blood.
These questions are in no way a substitute for healthcare professionals or any level of professional counseling. I’m an advocate for taking care of oneself mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. These questions reflect my heart, NOT my profession.
This questionnaire is an opportunity to journal your thoughts and feelings. It can serve as a launching pad on which to evaluate your heart condition as you understand it. My hope is that you will take the truths you discover about yourself and hold them up to the Light to evaluate them against who God says you are.
- Has there been a time when you could not help yourself but God made a way?
- Can you recall a time that you had a need met in a way you did not expect? Explain.
- Was there ever a time when you were not seeking God, but He showed up in a practical way?
- What is something great and unsearchable that was revealed to you by God?
- When you look back over your life, can you see the thread of God pursuing you?
Take Action
Use God’s Word to take control over the traumas in your life. Whenever you feel terrorized by your thoughts take them captive by replacing them with the truth of God’s promises in His Word.
Here is a scripture for you to print, cut and carry with you and/or post in places where you will see it often. Ground yourself in God’s truths not Satan’s attacks. Encourage your heart and mind every time you are reminded of His great love for YOU!
“Call to me and I shall answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things which you do not know.” Jeremiah 33:3 NIV
Translation: God has great mysteries He longs to reveal about Himself. He’s ready to meet practical needs in practical ways, but He’s also able to meet our needs that require His supernatural solutions. We’ll never get to the bottom or the top of who He is because there’s no one and nothing we can compare Him to.
