Daily Devotional For Tuesday, July 15, 2025

Good morning Southside! It’s “Terrific Tuesday”. Hunger is something everyone on this planet has, but there are different kinds of hungers. We have food hungers, sports and entertainment hungers, education and learning hungers, pleasure hungers, even rest and relaxation hungers. None of these are wrong in and of themselves, it is what we do with and how we handle them. When you are physically hungry, your stomach lets you know. It growls and you can even have stomach pains. You can get headaches and you feel fatigue. 

The problem of living in this country because we are so blessed, is that we gorge on satisfying all our hungers. We have all-you can eat buffets. We have 24 hour entertainment through TV and streaming. We have the Internet to do research and learn. In this country, we do not do much in moderation. According to the CDC, (Centers for Disease Control), 40.3% of adult Americans are obese. Obesity is higher among women (41.3%) than men (39.2%). Obesity is higher among non-white ethnic groups. West Virginia, Louisiana and Mississippi lead the nation with the highest obesity rates.

In case you are wondering, yes, this is going to be devotional, not an infomercial on obesity rates. The reason I share this is: Do you hunger for the Lord, His Word, godliness, holiness, righteousness and obedience as much or more than you do for other hungers? I read about a woman who was on a flight crossing the USA and she noticed across from her a man reading his Bible. She writes he was very intent in reading and studying his Bible. So, out of curiosity, she struck up a conversation with him. She says this stranger’s eyes teared up as he talked and shared about his passion to know Jesus Christ and fulfill God’s purpose for his life as a disciple maker. She asked what church he attended and he told her. Once she got home, she found that church’s web site and sent an email of her experience as a way to encourage others in his church to do this wherever they are. 

I read about a young college girl who had decided to attend a local growing church that was reaching students and young adults. She was sure what to expect, but she writes that when the preacher got up, all he did was give a pep-speech to motivate and inspire the audience on how to endure the upcoming week. She writes, “He never used the Bible. I thought churches used the Bible for their teaching and preaching. Maybe preachers should just read from the Bible. I am sure God can use that.” Here was a young college student who was hungry for the word of God, went to a church to get it, and it wasn’t preached. What is amazing to me is that she had enough insight to believe that God’s Word by Itself is enough. 

So, I ask you: Does your soul hunger, crave, even hurt for the Word of God? If and when you read it, it is a ritual you do, an item on your “To Do” list to get done. Or, do you drink from it? Feed from it? Do you take time to let the truth of God’s Word do what 2 Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness” (NASB)? Do you experience these four when you read the Word? Are you that hungry? Scripture was not the invention of man, but God. Not one author in the Bible ever takes credit – they give it all to God. It is inerrant – meaning – no errors, no mistakes, and no faults. 

It is beneficial in four ways and I will give you a brief explanation of each one:

1. Teaching – The Greek New Testament word used here is [διδασκαλία, didaskalia]. This refers to exclusive and specific divine instruction and doctrine given the believer who trusts the Scriptures. This is not pop-psychology or some kind of self-help, pull yourself up by your own bootstraps teaching, but that which comes from God. This means that as believers we should welcome and receive it gladly. Unfortunately, the natural man or unsaved person will not. See 1 Corinthians 2:14-16. 
2. Reproof – This is the Greek New Testament word [ἐλεγμός, elegmos]. This carries the idea of rebuking in order to convict of misbehavior or false doctrine. This refers to showing the truth to someone who has the wrong doctrinal understanding or whose behavior is not honoring Christ that the confrontation causes that person to at least be convicted of his/her wrong and hopefully confess to it. Regular study of the Scriptures will convict and if the person listens to the Holy Spirit, that person will confess that his/her attitude and/or actions are sinful and wrong. This is the point of Hebrews 4:12-13.
3. Correction – This is the Greek New Testament word [ἐπανόρθωσις, epanorthosis]. This word refers to the restoration of something to its original and proper condition. In secular Greek literature it was used of setting an object upright that had fallen down and for helping a person back on his feet after stumbling. Reproof is not enough. It does no one any good to simply point out where they are wrong. Scripture helps you show them how to right themselves through obedience to it. This is the point of Galatians 6:1. Psalm 119 is all about this. We see this most distinctively in Psalm 119:9-11.
4. Training – This is the Greek New Testament word [παιδεία, paideia]. It was originally used of bringing up and training a child by modeling the attitude and actions desired. Training in what? – righteousness. Our goal in life is to mirror the character, attitude and actions of Christ. This is what 2 Corinthians 3:18 says.

Assignment: How hungry are you for the Word of God compared to other hungers you have? Take a piece of paper and write your hungers down in a list. Then rate them from 1 to 10 with 10 being the highest as to how God would rate each of these hungers in your life.. Does the Word of God top them all? Why or why not?

Scripture To Meditate On: Psalm 32:8, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you” (NASB).

Prayer To Pray: “Lord, help me to hunger You and Your Word more than any other hunger I have. Give me a heart that receives Your teaching, Your reproof, Your correction and Your training for righteousness. Lord, I want to know You and emulate You before others. I love You Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen!”

I love you Southside! – Pastor Kelly