TBC Extra | thebereancall.org

Stagner, Barry

Your words were found, and I ate them, and Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; for I am called by Your name, O Lord God of hosts. Jeremiah:15:16

What a precious jewel the Word of God is to us today! In a time much like Jeremiah’s where the idolatry around us can be depressing and discouraging, we can see the world and our country moving further and further away from God. But like Jeremiah, we too have God’s Word as a source of joy and rejoicing. We too can remember that we are called by the name of the Lord of Hosts. We are His children, His family, His purchased possession.

We are the joy that was set before the Lord that caused Him to endure the cross and despise the shame. We are the ones who can never be separated from His love. We are the ones He will never leave or forsake. We are the ones who can do all things through our strength in Christ. We are the ones who can take all these reminders in His Word and let them be our food—food that brings joy and rejoicing in heart, though hearts all around us are hard and will not heed the call of God.

Thank the Lord for His Word today. Have some for lunch and see how it changes the rest of your day. Listen to it, pray it; just stay connected to it. This simple “up look” will change your entire outlook. It did just that for the man known as the Weeping Prophet, and it will do the same for you!

— Excerpted from Body Builders: A Daily Devotional by Barry Stagner, Sr. Pastor at Calvary Chapel Tustin, CA, and featured speaker on the nationally broadcast radio program The Truth about God.