7 then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature – (Genesis 2:7).
One Breath Birthed Life
When God breathed life into Adam, Adam exhaled the very breath of God. That one breath brought life and sustained it, so much so, that Adam became a living creature. We read in 2 Timothy 3:16 that “All Scripture is breathed out by God . . .” and in Hebrews we learn that “. . . the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12). The same Lord who breathed life into Adam, breathes life to those who read or hear the Word of God.
From these two portions of Scripture, we can know that the Word of God is alive and active because God exhaled it, (literally “breathed out by God”). But there is more. His Word (that which he breathed), has the power to not only birth life in you, but also to others as you exhale that which God breathed into you. It has the power birth life to those that you figuratively “exhale” his life-giving Word to. This is the power of the Gospel message. It births life.
Exhaling the Breath of God
But how does one “exhale” the breath of God to others? What does that even mean? To the point, it is loving others just as he has loved you (see John 13:34). But what does it look like? Let me offer a couple of examples.
I know of three people, now in their early twenties, who have faithfully visited one of three different nursing homes for several years. These three friends gather all of the elderly together to sing the old time hymns from the hymnal with them. They don’t preach or teach, they invite a guest minister to do that. They just love on them. This has been their weekly routine every Sunday after noon, for over 10 years now, and these friends continue to do so to this day. This is exhaling the breath of God. They are taking what God has given them and spend it on others for the sole purpose of advancing the Kingdom of God.
I know of a woman who once had a neighbor, an invalid who was deathly afraid that someone would break into her house at night as she slept. She lived all alone, and had no family to take care of her. This woman I know befriended her, visited her, and even baked cookies for her on a regular basis. She baked the love of God into every one of those cookies. It was through her love and compassion that she exhaled the breath of God to this friendless invalid woman.
Spend Yourself in Service Toward Others
Selflessly spending yourself in service toward others is exhaling the breath of God. Note however, that the focus is not on serving, but rather on loving. Serving is a means by which one does love. Why is this important? Because one can serve and not love, but one cannot love without the heart of a servant.
I urge you to invest what God has given you in the lives of others, and not with little effort. But rather, to the same extent that he poured himself out to you, pour yourself in love to others. Exhaling the breath of God births life.