Tested, Tried & Proven: The Transformative Power of God’s Word

The glow of the streetlights flashed and faded rhythmically, like a strobe, as our family drove home from church that evening. Tuckered out after a mid-week “Kids’ Club” filled with fun, friends, and teaching about the Bible, I tried to fall asleep beside my brother in the backseat. Those persistent lights brightly shone through my closed eyelids, preventing slumber.

That night, our Kids’ Club teacher told us, “Everything in the Bible is true—every single word.” She read the creation story from Genesis 1 and closed with Colossians 1:16 (NIV): “For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.” 

“God made everything!” she claimed. But driving home in the dark that night, I fixated on those incessant streetlights and thought, “It’s not true. God didn’t make these streetlights. Men made these lights! If the Bible is wrong about God making everything, how can everything in the Bible be true?”

So began a temporary crisis of faith. For a season, I read my Bible through a skeptic’s eyes. Phrases like “to this day” (found frequently in the Old Testament—for example, Genesis 26:33; 32:32; or 35:20) cast doubt on my belief in the veracity of Scripture, and I wondered how I could possibly distinguish between truth and falsehood in the Bible. 

The solution to this mystery is simple, of course. I did not yet understand proper biblical interpretation—we must interpret a passage according to its intended meaning (which requires context). Over time, I learned how to read, study, and correctly interpret Scripture, but it wasn’t until my faith in God’s Word was tested that I became transformed by it. 

Tested & Tried

Second Peter 1:3 says that God has given us everything we need to live our lives according to his will, and God provided many opportunities for me to test this truth. 

The first was in my years as a newlywed wife. After an ill-equipped pastor confessed his ignorance of godly marital counsel, I felt abandoned in the fight for our marriage. I believed my husband held sole responsibility for our difficult marriage. I searched Scripture for help, and God delivered. He didn’t change my husband. He didn’t even show me how I could change my husband. Instead, he changed me through Ephesians 6—a passage seemingly unrelated to marriage yet crucial to the transformation of my own heart. Almost overnight, a marriage that had hung by a thread for years became a “three-fold cord, not quickly broken” (Ecclesiastes 4:12).

Years later, a perfect storm of circumstances placed us in a highly precarious financial situation. Feeding popcorn to our kids for breakfast, I questioned God’s promises to provide (Genesis 22, Philippians 4:19). God was faithful. He didn’t provide more income immediately, but he did provide our needs—including the inspiration and ingenuity to use what we had or make something new. Through 1 Timothy 6:6–10 and other passages, he taught us to be content and thankful and to diligently steward our time, talent, and treasure. 

During a health scare that had me on bed rest for almost two months, then a journey of recovery spanning years, God’s Word proved true once again as Bible reading became a healing balm, soothing my anxious soul and providing a peace that passes understanding. My physical helplessness became a classroom for grace (2 Corinthians 12:9–10), and I understood the truth of the gospel with renewed clarity. God didn’t change my circumstances completely, but his Word provided a deeper healing—one I needed far more than physical relief. 

Transformed by God’s Word

God used streetlights, an absent pastor, popcorn for breakfast, and debilitating illness to show me his faithfulness, prove the sufficiency of Scripture, and transform me into a woman who more closely resembles Christ.

As I sought answers in the Bible for our crumbling marriage, God’s Word convicted me of selfishness and showed me how to love my husband well.

When I longed for God to provide financially in our season of need, Scripture shone a light on my ingratitude and discontentment and reminded me of God’s character and worthiness of praise even when the pantry is empty.

In the midst of my physical weakness, God’s Word revived my soul and taught me the meaning of real rest in the sufficiency of Jesus Christ. 

God’s Word remained true through the overwhelming season of raising three children under five years old. It became life-giving truth in our experience of church hurt, trauma, parenting a prodigal, and seemingly countless other trials and tribulations.

Proven Powerful & Precious

As I grew in my knowledge of Jesus Christ through Bible reading and study, he provided everything I needed to endure. More than a resolution to all my problems, Christ became my greatest desire and constant delight, and he met me through the pages of my Bible. I say with Paul, “I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8 NASB). 

I’ve tested Peter’s words in 2 Peter 1:3 and found them true. God has indeed given us everything we need to live according to his will in any circumstance, and everything we need is found in Jesus Christ. Knowing him changes us—for God’s glory and our good. He is revealed to us through the pages of God’s Word. Read it, study it, live it out, and be transformed.