Pray the WordShembull

A Famine of God's Word

Today's verses describe the worst famine of all. Worse than a famine of bread or a thirst for water is the spiritual famine we experience when there is silence from God. We need the Word of God more than we need daily bread or water for our bodies. Without God’s Word, we have no salvation, no hope, no promises to stand on, no truth to cling to, no light to lead us in a world of darkness, lies, and deception.

As followers of Christ, we should be desperate for the Word of God. Gratefully, though, our desperation is different from what we read about in Amos 8. Most of us have access to God’s Word and can open up a Bible. We have 66 books, all of which are inspired by the Spirit of God, so we need to take full advantage of this privilege. We need to feast on it and drink from it, recognizing that it is far more important than anything else in this world.

At the same time, this passage gives us a sobering perspective on the plight of unreached people, that is, people who have little or no access to the gospel. These people are currently experiencing a famine of God’s Word. Many of them don’t even have a full translation of Scripture in their language. They live without light, without the promises from God, without hope in Jesus. This should lead followers of Christ not simply to feast on the Word for themselves but also to pray, give, and go so that the famine of others might, by the grace of God, be turned into a feast.

Prayer

God, we praise you for your Word. We praise you that the famine we read about in Amos 8 is not a reality for us right now. We have an abundance of your Word. We praise you for your Word and for revealing it to us. We praise you for the life and the strength and the joy and the wisdom and the peace and the hope that we find in your Word. Your Word is a rock.

Lord, we pray that you would make us a people who spread your Word to others. We think of the people around us who don’t know the goodness of your Word. Help us to encourage others with your Word, to give others a copy of your Word, to lead others to know your Word. We pray especially for people around the world who have no access to your Word. We ask for your blessing on all those who are working to translate the Bible in order to relieve the famine of your Word among people groups all around the world. In Jesus’ name, Amen.