Day 140.
“Is not my word like fire, declares the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces? (Jeremiah 23:29 ESV)
Sometimes I question my calling as a preacher of God’s Word, wondering what good my preaching is doing. When I speak it to my teenage boys I wonder if any of it gets through to them. I shouldn’t wonder, I know, but I do. When I don’t see the immediate impact of the Word in their lives, like I want to see, I am so tempted to take more extreme measures to change them. Even this morning I was contemplating some form of punishment to get the attention of one of them. Why do I give God’s Word such little chance? I know why, actually. I am impatient and I want to see change in particular ways. In this I am no different from them. But God’s Word is powerful, especially accompanied with prayer. It does not return void. It is “like fire…and like a hammer that breaks rock in pieces.” O, how I need to remember that!
Lord, would you forgive me of my impatience and my unbelief! I am such a selfish sinner. You changed my heart by grace – those were the words that set me heart ablaze so many years ago. Those were the words that break it still when I am confronted with my lack of grace toward my kids. Give me courage and patience to trust you and believe the power of your Word to bring real heart change.
