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Morning Devotion for the Season of Epiphany
January 27, 2025
John Chrysostom
Reading: Jeremiah 1:4-10
Now the word of the Lord came to me saying,
‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you;
I appointed you a prophet to the nations.’
Then I said, ‘Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.’ But the Lord said to me,
‘Do not say, “I am only a boy”;
for you shall go to all to whom I send you,
and you shall speak whatever I command you.
Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.’
Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the Lord said to me,
‘Now I have put my words in your mouth.
See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms,
to pluck up and to pull down,
to destroy and to overthrow,
to build and to plant.’
Meditation: Jeremy O’Neill
I have always loved this passage from Jeremiah. Maybe I am predisposed to it because of my first name, or relate to the statement “I am only a boy” as I am one of the youngest priests in the Episcopal Church. More than that though, I think the intimacy of this passage is what strikes me. Rarely does God physically touch people in the Old Testament, but when Jeremiah’s mouth is touched and he receives God’s words, we know that a significant change has occurred. And though none of us have been physically touched by God in the same way that Jeremiah has, we can still take this change to heart.
What would it mean if we thought that all of our words come from God? Would we use them with more care? Would we try to put them to good use? Would we use them to harm others? Regardless of where we locate the relationship between our words and God, when we speak, God is not far away. Therefore we have a responsibility to others and to God to do so kindly, honestly, mercifully, and lovingly.
This may seem at odds with the end of this passage, but it is actually congruent with the calls to pluck up and pull down, destroy and overthrow, build and plant. Speaking with respect for people does not mean we do not challenge them or call them to a fuller understanding of their humanity and the humanity of others. Words can be used to stand up when we see someone doing something harmful, which comes out of a love for both the person and for the broader creation.
A lot of our current speech is, quite simply, tragic. So many of the words we see or hear are harmful, incorrect, vicious, or dangerous, not to mention all of the noise and dismissiveness that comes along with those things. But what resonates with me is when people are able to speak the truth even when the circumstances make that difficult, and are able to do so without falling into the same traps of vitriol and hatefulness. God is always making things new, pulling down what is old and oppressive and planting something new and life giving. Our speech can be evident to that, as the disruption of hatred in favor of a loving, liberating, and life-giving relationship with one another is evidence of God at work in all of us.
Prayer
Almighty God, who hast given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication unto thee; and hast promised through thy well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name thou wilt be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, the desires and petitions of thy servants as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of thy truth, and in the world to come life everlasting. Amen.
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