Top 10 Scriptures that have Shaped My Life

I celebrated my 40th birthday recently, and in doing so spent some time reflecting on what scriptures have shaped my life so far. Many of them have directly impacted how I’ve chosen to walk out my singleness.  I’ve wanted to be married and have a family ever since I was a little girl, so you can imagine how many conversations God and I have had about this topic over 40 years. He’s been incredibly faithful to speak to me through scripture. I’d love to share ten of these influential verses with you and describe how they’ve been impactful to my life – my prayer is that at least one of them will also encourage you on your own journey. Let’s get started!

1. “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13

This verse was a lifeline for me after I experienced break up after break up. The heartache of a broken relationship was plenty to deal with, but add to that the realization I was falling into the same unhealthy patterns over and over and it’s clear a good dose of hope was necessary. Two mistakes I’ve repeated on my dating journey are idolizing marriage and failing to recognize and respect my value. As a result, I chose to date men who did not appreciate my value as evidenced by their words and actions toward me. While I haven’t settled in choosing a life partner, I sure have come close. This scripture has continuously reminded me that so long as I keep God at the center of my life, I can have joy and peace….and there’s always hope in the Lord. Hope that HE will see me through – because that’s His character – He is faithful. Hope that He will free me, redeem me, make me whole, and keep me whole. In essence, this verse brought me to the conclusion that everything is going to be okay – because even though I’m single, I’m not alone and I don’t have to do life on my own. There is no reason to strive for the desires of my heart when I surrender to the God of hope who empowers me to love according to His ways. 

2. “I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.” Psalm 4:8

When I was a little girl, I often had nightmares and would run to my parents’ room, waking them in the middle of the night because I was afraid. One time, my mom gave me this scripture and I have clung to it ever since – praying it before I go to sleep. It helps me focus on who God is and His promise of peace and protection so I can fall asleep more easily.

3. “You make known to me the path of life, in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Psalm 16:11

I was on a spiritual retreat in my mid-twenties when this scripture gripped my heart. I was feeling incredibly sad about my singleness and God met me in such a tangible way – encountering me with His joy and comfort in the very moment I was meditating on this scripture. I knew that it was true because I had just lived this scripture out by experiencing God’s fullness of joy while basking in His presence. Ever since then, I’ve known in the depth of my being that fullness of joy is not produced through my circumstances. Rather it transpires at the feet of Jesus, where no one can see me, and I’m having a heart to heart talk with Him. Whenever I need to increase my level of joy, I know where to go. It’s not running to find a companion or numbing myself through escapism, rather it’s found in Jesus. There is no greater pleasure than being in His presence.

4. “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying ‘This is the way; walk in it.’” Isaiah 30:21

For as long as I can recall, I’ve struggled with trusting that I can hear God’s voice clearly. It wasn’t until I was 30 years old that my confidence in hearing His voice started to grow after realizing through conversations with others on this topic that God often speaks to me in a voice that sounds a lot like my own. I don’t typically receive visions or have strong feelings. Rather I usually have a subtle, general sense about something. Sometimes that sense is packaged with phrases or words. Sometimes it’s just a deep knowing. This scripture helps me fight the nagging lie that somehow I’m going to miss “it” – whatever “it” is – whether it’s a decision I’m making about my own life, or advice I’m offering to friends. There have been times I’ve prayed for others whatever comes to mind in that moment, and I have no idea if I’m hitting the mark or not. And then they tell me something that confirms what I had prayed was exactly what they needed. Every time something like this happens, I’m reminded that it was God’s voice leading me the whole time. I take comfort in knowing that He’s truly leading me even if I’m unaware. This is the beauty of abiding in Him and staying surrendered to Him. 

5. “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me. All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.” Psalm 23

This is the very first passage of scripture that I memorized as a child. When I was a teenager, the Lord used a message focusing on this passage during a youth group gathering to nudge me to publicly display my commitment and devotion to Jesus through water baptism. As an adult, I have regularly asked the Lord who He is for me at any given moment because I do not want (see verse 1). Sometimes, it feels like I am in want, so I often ask the Lord to show me who He is for me in a given moment or situation so that I can see how it is true that He is providing for my needs. Because He’s such a loving Shepherd that knows exactly what I need at any given moment, He always shows up in a capacity fitting for that specific time. I wrote an entire blog post about this. Check it out here.

6. “I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth and I will fill it. Psalms 81:10

I can relate to Moses and his hesitancy to speak…this has been a lifelong battle for me. I find it interesting that the very area where God has given us a destiny is often the area where we face the biggest battles. For me, opening my mouth and trusting God to fill it with words has been terrifying. I’ve played the “what if” game way too many times. What if I say something wrong? What if I offend someone? What if I freeze in fear and nothing comes out? Do you see the problem here? I was relying on myself. I had to get out of my own way. This scripture was a promise I clung to when I helped produce a live talk show on a radio station that had a listener base of over 100,000 people. Occasionally, I would co-host a show and the fact that it was live really challenged me. You see, I like to plan and prepare in advance. But when you’re interacting with a live audience there’s only so much preparation you can do. This scripture has helped me increase my trust in the Lord’s ability to provide me with just the right words for any given situation on or off radio. My job is simply to submit to Him and allow His spirit to flow through me.

7. “By faith Abraham, even though he was past age – and Sarah herself was barren – was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise.” Hebrews 11:11

I believe with all of my heart that God has promised me a husband to partner with and enjoy on this earth. And yet….here I am still single and well past the prime marrying age according to some standards (not my standards, just so we’re clear, lol). This scripture not only gives me hope, it reminds me of God’s faithfulness. Ever since I was in my twenties, I’ve paused any time I’ve seen a clock strike 11:11, recalled this scripture and prayed for my future husband. Sometimes it’s a cry of agony – reflecting the vast and immeasurable longing for our lives to be joined. Other times, I’m full of expectancy for the promise to come to pass and my prayer reflects a hopeful and even joyful tone. And oftentimes, it’s a simple prayer of thanks to God for His faithfulness. No more words are needed because there’s such an extensive history between us around this topic.

8. “But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall. Then you will trample down the wicked; they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day when I do these things, says the Lord Almighty.” Malachi 4:2-3

This scripture passage was brought to my attention in a season when I was awakened to the fact that Jesus still heals today. The Lord used it to encourage me to pray for healing for others (physically, spiritually, & mentally) by the power of Jesus Christ, and as I took a step of faith in doing so, I started to see healings take place. I haven’t stopped praying for healing for others whenever the opportunity arises…and I continue to see Him move in miraculous ways.

9. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, declares the Lord, For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways. And My thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9

God’s thoughts and ways are different than mine – and that’s a good thing. This scripture has been a lifelong companion to me beginning in my twenties. The entire chapter of Isaiah 55 is incredibly encouraging. In the end, everything turns out okay – more than okay! I often think about that fact when I’m facing a perplexing circumstance. I constantly remind myself that God sees the big picture and I don’t. He’s trustworthy so I invite Him to shift my perspective whenever I think He should have orchestrated things differently in any given situation.

10. “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I come that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” John 10:10

I’ve experienced many battles in my lifetime – many of which were designed to steal my joy and peace. And yet, Jesus has always set me free and restored the joy or peace I lost along the way. This scripture really started to come alive for me in my thirties. Not only is Jesus the door to eternal life, He died on the cross and resurrected so that we can have abundant life here on the earth. When I think of abundance, the word “more” comes to mind. In the past decade, I’ve had a growing sense that there is always more to discover about Jesus that allows us to live life to the full – unhindered by the enemy’s attempt to derail us. For example, I could be devastated and swirling in self-pity right now because I find myself still single at age 40 after years of waiting. I could be offended at God. I could be a gloomy, moody mess 24/7. Am I disappointed about this large gap of a promise unfulfilled in my life? Absolutely. But I’ve chosen to face my disappointment, offer it to the Lord, and invite Him to align my perspective with His because the gift of the present moment will pass, and I want to live these moments in such a way that when I look back I have no regrets. The ONLY way this is possible is through the power of Jesus at work in my life. Every day He shows me more of how to step into the abundant life He has for each of us – my job is simply to say yes to Him. If you’d like to read more about how I process pain, I share the power of confronting my disappointments and how God showed up for me in the middle of my sadness and questions in this blog post.

There you have it, the top 10 scriptures that have shaped my life so far. I’m so glad you stopped by, and I hope you were encouraged as you read through it. If you know of anyone who would be encouraged by this blog post, will you do me (and them) a favor and share it with them? Now, more than ever, we need to encourage each other.