I'm glad you can join us for this daily encouragement from the Our Daily Bread Devotional.

Today's reading is titled Trusting the Bible, and it was written by Patricia Rabin.

Billy Graham, the renowned American evangelist, once described his struggle to accept the Bible as completely true.

One night as he walked alone in the moonlight at a retreat center in the San Bernardino Mountains, he dropped to his knees and placed his Bible on a tree stump, able only to stutter a prayer.

Oh, God, there are many things in this book I do not understand.

By confessing his confusion, Graham said the Holy Spirit finally freed me to say it. Father, I am going to accept this as

thy word by faith. When he stood up, he still had questions, but he said, I knew a spiritual battle

in my soul had been fought and won. The young prophet Jeremiah

fought spiritual battles too, yet he consistently sought answers in scripture, saying in

chapter 15, When your words came, I ate them. They were my joy and my heart's delight.

He declared in chapter 20,

The word of the Lord is in my heart like a fire.

A fire shut up in my bones.

19th century evangelist Charles Spurgeon wrote,

Jeremiah lets us into a secret.

His outer life, especially his faithful ministry,

was due to his inward love of the word which he preached.

We too can shape our life through the wisdom of Scripture despite our struggles.

We can keep studying, as always, by faith.

Today's Our Daily Bread Devotional Scripture reading is from Jeremiah chapter 15, verses 15 through 21.

Lord, you understand. Remember me and care for me. Avenge me on my persecutors. You are long suffering. Do not take me away. Think of how I suffer

reproach for your sake. When your words came, I ate them. They were my joy and my heart's delight.

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