Like A Baby

1 Peter 2:2 – Like newborn babes, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up to salvation. (RSV)

My brother mentioned this scripture verse to me the other night as he explained the message that his pastor had delivered based upon it. The point that his pastor had made was quite intriguing, and immediately I began to consider using this verse as my devotional topic. At first I was a bit hesitant, as it was not my "original" idea or interpretation, but then something happened one morning that let me know that this was indeed the verse around which I should centre my devotional.

My ten-month-old daughter was lying with me in the bed. As she began to fret a little bit, I placed her on the floor, thinking she wanted to go to see her mama. Placing her on the floor, though, I realized it was not her mama that she wanted, but rather her bottle — which she could see sitting atop the table beside the bed. The bottle was empty, but she still craved and wanted it. Eventually her mother made her a new bottle to satisfy her craving.

That is the longing about which Peter speaks in today's verse. We should always long for and crave spiritual milk, which is the word of God. My daughter craved and longed for her milk bottle because she knew that what is normally inside the bottle is something that makes her feel good. Likewise, our "bottle" — the Bible — always has something good inside for us to consume. Never will we take our bottle in hand and find it to be empty, because we have a loving Father who continuously fills it with spiritual nourishment for our lives.

For ten months now my daughter has had this same longing and craving for her milk, whether it be from her mother or from a bottle. It is a craving so strong that it is the first thing on her mind when she wakes in the morning, and the last thing she desires before she goes to bed at night.

Because she receives this milk in the morning and at night and every three hours in between, she is continually growing and maturing. Just think how much maturity and growth we could experience if our longing for spiritual milk was even half that of a baby's longing for milk. We would be well served to have this longing even in the morning and evening, much less every three hours in between. So the challenge for our lives is to become as new-born babies longing for the milk of our Father.

Prayer: Loving and caring Father, we thank you and praise you with all that we are for the wonderful spiritual nourishment that you have provided to us. Instil in our souls a new and stronger desire to consume that spiritual milk which you provide. Amen.