She lay on her bed—her best friend beside her.
My great-grandmother lived with my paternal grandparents for as long as I can remember. I never knew my great-grandfather or why my great-grandmother came to live with my grandparents.
Since my grandmother served as my babysitter, I saw my great-grandmother almost daily. She always seemed ancient. But once, I calculated how old she would have been when I was a young boy—just a few years older than I was.
She and my grandmother loved to sit in the living room, watch game shows on television, and crochet. My great-grandmother also loved to plant and work with flowers in the yard and her bedroom. What time she wasn’t in the living room, she lay on her bed in her room.
A plain wooden chair with armrests rested at the foot of her bed—a chair that now rests in one of our bedrooms. And in that chair, I often sat—watching her crochet, listening to her stories, and watching her best friend who never left her side. Her Bible always lay just beside her on the bed or the nightstand beside her bed—another piece of furniture now beside my bed. And most proudly, I own her ragged Bible—the cover long gone, and the pages ruffled.
My great-grandmother came to mind one Christmas. I took out a small night lamp, turned it on, placed her Bible on the table in front of it, and turned the pages to Luke 2—the Christmas story.
My great-grandmother believed what the writer of Hebrews said about God’s Word. She kept it close by and always lived out its principles. I never saw or heard her violate any command of God’s Word. Her example taught me a lot.
Though aged, God’s Word is not dead. The stories still come alive when read, and the commands remain relevant. When read, God’s Word burns into our souls and becomes an instrument through which God confronts us with our spiritual needs—the most essential needs in life. But the Word doesn’t leave us hanging with no hope. It gives us the solution to our dilemmas and guidance for every life situation.
God’s Word reminds us of the most important thing: God loved us so much that He gave His Son to pay for our sins.
How can you let God’s Word become your best friend?
(photo courtesy of the author)
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Martin Wiles lives in Greenwood, SC, and is the founder of Love Lines from God. He is a freelance editor, English teacher, pastor, and author who has been published in numerous publications. He also serves as Managing Editor for both Christian Devotions and Vinewords.net. He is the author of six books. His most recent book, Don’t Just Live...Really Live, was released in November 2021. He and his wife are parents of two and grandparents of six. He can be contacted at [email protected].