"The Good Way". . .

I have heard my husband say that of all the people in the Bible, he would not have wanted to be the prophet Jeremiah.  He was called "the weeping Prophet" and was called to prophesy in very dark times.  Some scholars say that he was only about 14 years of age when the word of the Lord came to him!  In the first chapter of Jeremiah, God spoke to him and said:

     "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.  Then said I, Ah, Lord God! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.  But the Lord said unto me, Say not, I am a child; for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.
     Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord.  Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at their faces; they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the Lord, to deliver thee."

Wow!  What an assignment!  No wonder he is known as "one of the greater prophets"!  During his ministry, he was rejected by his neighbors, by his own family, by the priests and prophets, by his friends, by all the people and by the King!  At one point, Jeremiah became discouraged and said he was not going to speak any more in the Lord's Name, "but His Word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones", and the faithful prophet could not keep silent! 

I titled this little devotional, "The Good Way" because of Jeremiah's second message to backslidden Judah.  In chapter 6, verse 16, we read:  "Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls." 
I love this verse, and thank the Lord for the privilege of walking with Him in this 'Good Way' of Faith and Obedience.

As we think about the call of Jeremiah, I wonder if there is a young man today---maybe around 14 years of age--- whom God wants to lay His hand upon and call into His service!  If so, I trust that you will answer, "Here am I, Lord, send me!"