On a recent visit to the Naples Zoo, my wife and I were celebrating our fifth wedding anniversary and had high hopes of enjoying the pleasure of roaring lions, trained birds, and swinging monkeys. Unfortunately, we made our stop in the zoo on one of the hottest days of the summer. Leopards were resting on their trees, alligators were cooling themselves in the water, and only the ducks seemed eager for our attention. For the price of what should have been a great experience, the park was pretty lifeless.

Our word "zoo" comes from the Greek word, zoon, which means "a living being." Most frequently in the New Testament, zoon is translated as "beast," but there is an empowering verb that serves as the backbone of this lesser creature. The Greek word, zao, means "to live" or "living." We find it several times in the following context:

"And it shall come to pass, [that] in the place where it was said unto them, Ye [are] not my people; there shall they be called the children of the living (zao) God." Romans 9:26

"[Forasmuch as ye are] manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living (zao) God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshly tables of the heart." II Corinthians 3:3

"And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living (zao) God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in [them]; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people." II Corinthians 6:16

"For they themselves show of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living (zao) and true God." I Thessalonians 1:9

"But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living (zao) God, the pillar and ground of the truth." I Timothy 3:15

"For therefore we both labor and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living (zao) God, who is the Savior of all men, specially of those that believe." I Timothy 4:10

"Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living (zao) God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;" I Timothy 6:17

From the earliest of times, we learn that everything alive must also have breath. Apart from oxygen (a compound word that builds from -gen or genes, "that which produces "), there is no life. Several years ago, Avalon sang these words to a melodic verse:

"I take each breath as if it is my first
I hold it there, so deep inside me till I'm about to burst
I speak each word as if it is Your name
I move my lips, I see the whisper stir the gentle flame
Your heart beats and so does mine
Your love moves and I know I'm alive
You are my oxygen
I breath you in, I breath you out."

All life and breath comes from God. Hardly a believer in the cross of Christ can pretend that he gave himself his own breath or that he gave himself his own life. We find it easy to conceive of the truth that God "breathed" His Word (i.e. "inspired") in II Timothy 3:16-17, but so often we fail to acknowledge that our very life is Christ because He is not merely a Living God, but He is a Living God IN us.

"I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself up for me." Galatians 2:20

Going to back to the beginning, the most simplistic message is given to enhance our understanding of this truth.

"And the Lord God formed man [of] the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." Genesis 2:7

The breath of life comes from God. Thus, every breath we take is a gift. Every breath we take belongs to Him. Every breath we take has its source in the Living and "breathing" God.

"The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life." Job 33:4

Without a doubt we can be confident that God did indeed "breath" His Word into our world so that we might have the understanding, knowledge, and truth of who He is and what He has purposed. But before you had the reason to understand or the discernment to know truth, you were still His creation. From your mother's womb, He created you and gave you life.

"Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord." Psalm 150:6

If you've gotten this far, then you still have life. Stop reading for a moment and just praise the Lord.