Reflection—Trusting the Heart of the Author

Have you ever wondered why God chose to reveal Himself to us through His written Word?

I hadn’t, until God used an unexpected experience to teach me something precious.

A friend who is very dear to me once shared that some of the letters I had written to lovingly correct or confront her had made her feel sad because she hadn’t understood my heart and had misunderstood my intentions. She told me that she preferred face-to-face conversations because hearing my tone of voice helped her understand what I truly meant.

That conversation stayed with me.

To be honest, I felt saddened when my friend misunderstood my heart. Part of me became impatient and wanted to withdraw, harden my heart, and simply leave the matter alone.

Yet the Holy Spirit kept softening my heart and gently guiding me until He led me to write another long letter about some important matters in our friendship.

As I wrote and prayed, God helped me realize something I had never seen before.

There is something unique about a written letter. Unlike a face-to-face conversation, the writer cannot immediately explain his tone, clarify his intentions, or reassure the reader with facial expressions. Whether the letter is received rightly depends greatly on whether the reader already trusts the writer’s heart. If the reader approaches the letter believing the writer genuinely loves them, the very same words will often be understood very differently than if they are read with suspicion or fear.

Then God turned my thoughts to Scripture.

Who is the Writer of the Bible? The Holy Spirit.

And how does He call us to know Him?

“We walk by faith, not by sight.”

I became deeply convicted that we cannot truly understand God’s Word unless we first trust the heart of the One who wrote it. When we approach Scripture convinced that God is good, loving, wise, and faithful, we begin to hear His heart behind His words. But when we doubt His character, we can easily misunderstand even His loving correction and gracious commands.

When we read the Word of God through the lens of trust—knowing God is our loving Father—His commandments read like protective guardrails. But if we read them through a lens of fear or suspicion, those same commandments can feel like the walls of a prison.

What did Satan do when he tempted Adam and Eve to disobey God’s command? Before tempting them to violate God’s commandment, he first led them to doubt God’s goodness.

As I reflected on this, I was humbled to realize that I have done the very same thing to God countless times. How often have I misunderstood His heart, questioned His goodness, or read His Word through the lens of fear instead of trust?

Yet He has never stopped loving me.

Even though we grieve His heart by distrusting His goodness, He remains patient, faithful, and kind. He continues to pursue us through His Word, gently inviting us to know Him, trust Him, and delight in Him more and more.

Perhaps this is one reason God has chosen to give us His written Word. Every time we open the Bible, He invites us to trust the unseen Author before we fully understand His words. As we trust Him by faith rather than by sight, His heart becomes increasingly clear, His Word becomes increasingly precious, and our fellowship with Him grows increasingly sweet.

We do not read the Bible merely to gain information, but to know the living God. When our hearts are anchored in His goodness, we no longer come to Scripture merely looking for answers—we come to meet the One who loves us.

May God graciously increase our faith to trust His heart more and more, so that we may delight in Him as we read His Word, rejoice in fellowship with Him, and know Him more deeply each day.

P.S. I have been enjoying writing down these reflections for the sake of my own walk with the Lord and for the loved ones God has graciously placed in my life. I share them with an open hand.

If anything I write doesn’t resonate with your understanding of Scripture, or if you ever feel uncomfortable with me sharing reflections like these, please feel free to let me know. My desire is always to honor God, remain faithful to His Word, and strengthen our fellowship in Christ. I truly value your honesty, encouragement, and correction.❤️May God bless you.