This post is part of the series His Encouragement
Other posts in this series:
Welcome! Welcome, dearest friends, to His Encouragement: Biblical Inspiration for Your Thursday. Every week, I join a few blogging friends to bring you a Bible passage and a little hope-filled discussion. We pray that these devotionals help you end your week strong in God’s love and purpose for you.
Today’s Scripture
For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.
Hebrews 5:12-14, ESV
It is not easy being a parent. Anyone who says otherwise is looking back with rose-colored glasses and has forgotten the hard times.
I have found that the newborn stage is the hardest for me. This tiny, fragile, precious little baby needs constant attention and care. He or she is unable to communicate their needs except by crying. This can be difficult for sleep-deprived parents – even veteran parents – to interpret correctly every time.
But the newborn stage does not last forever. Eventually, he or she moves into the adorable baby phase. They are a tad more interesting (in my opinion) because now they coo, laugh, wiggle fingers, kick out feet, push up on their bellies, etc. This gives way to crawling and then walking.
The toddler age is currently my favorite. They get better at walking, running, and climbing. They start saying words, then sentences, then full-blown conversations. One day you are teaching them how to say the word “one”. You blink and suddenly they are counting to ten on their own and singing Sabbath School songs.
There are still challenges, but they are new and different from before. Maybe they are learning to share, not hit others or throw temper tantrums. They are potty training and discovering new words to express big emotions. It is possible that they are covered in small boo-boos and bruises from active play. You use positive re-enforcement and give them lots of hugs and cuddles.
But being a parent and caring for these precious little ones is worth all of the hardship and challenges.
Growing in Christ
Now that I have two toddlers and a newborn, I can understand and relate to the writer of the book of Hebrews more clearly. Before children, the passage in Hebrews 5:12-14 came across to me as a rather harsh rebuke or correction.
After all, he was comparing the believers to little children, unable to eat solid food yet and so they are being sustained on milk.
Even though it seemed condescending to my younger self, I realize now that the words are not as harsh as I once thought. In fact, it is a pretty accurate depiction of us as we are growing in Christ.
Whether we are brand new to the faith or have been believers all our lives, the duration of our relationship with Christ does not really matter. What matters is the depth of our relationship.
Where is your relationship right now?
Some of us may have known Jesus for decades but are stuck in the “newborn” phase: surviving off the basic but crucial “milk” of the Gospel, not quite sure how to communicate except by crying out to Him in our times of need.
Others of us might be in the toddler phase of our faith: we are eagerly devouring as much of God’s Word as we can, our understanding and knowledge of the Lord is growing rapidly, and we ask a lot of “why” questions.
There may be a few teenage-phased Christians among us, too, who are searching for meaning, purpose, and identity in Christ in a new way. This is usually a time of trials and some may even experience confusion and doubts.
And then there are others who have made it through that phase and into the maturity of a rock-solid, yet intimately personal, relationship with Christ.
Let the Lord nurture you
I don’t know where you are on this gradual journey of faith, but the Lord does and He is with you through all the ups and downs, highs and lows.
Let Him lead and guide you at His pace, and you will discover that He is weaning you from the basic “milk” of the Gospel and onto some of the heartier, meatier truths of His love and Word at the right time for you.
Friend, may you always be growing in Christ!
What verse has touched your heart this week? Share in the comments below!

Be sure to also visit my fellow bloggers and read their encouragement for your Thursday as well:
- Trisha of Joy of Reading
- Nicole of The Christian Fiction Girl
- Jessica of A Baker’s Perspective
- Becca of The Becca Files
- Gina of Stories by Gina
- Rev. Rebecca Writes
Hi there, blogger. Would you like to join us in sharing encouragement from the Word of God every Thursday? Don’t be shy! Contact Trisha or Nicole today!

Are you in the market for a new Bible?
Bibles.com is a great place to find the perfect Bible for you.
From hardcovers to paperbacks, regular to study Bibles, many
versions and translations are available and in multiple languages.
Get your Bible today!
Featured Photo by Ben White on Unsplash.
Continue reading this series:
His Encouragement: Let Us Pray
You know what I love? That the Bible sort of follows where you’re at in the moment. So, if my brain is overwhelmed and overloaded, the Bible gives me milk. But, when I’m at peace and life is pretty chill, the Bible gives me meat. God always knows where I’m at no matter what! Great post today.
You are so right! Unlike life that moves in a linear-fashion, our relationship with Christ grows in a unique way. Sometimes trials or challenges may lead us back to milk… if that is what the Lord knows we need at that moment in time. And now that I better understand the importance of milk, especially the nutrient-dense milk a mother’s body makes for a newborn, the more I realize that it is not a bad thing if, as Christians, we may have to go back to take in the “milk” of the Gospel. The illustration of milk vs solid food is quite amazing!
Love your post today! Thanks for sharing <3
❤️
This is such a great verse! It is one of my favorites, and the analogy that you draw is so perfect. Thank you for encouraging me today!
Glad it was encouraging!