I was just talking to a friend yesterday who recently gave birth to a beautiful baby boy. He’s less than a week old. She was sharing some of her early experiences as a first-time mom, and one thing really stood out to me.
She said that in those first few nights, the baby would wake up screaming—really screaming. She and her husband tried everything they knew to do. They rocked him, patted him, soothed him. Nothing worked. This happened several times, and understandably, it became stressful for them.
Eventually, they realized something simple but profound: the baby was just hungry.
Once they fed him, he calmed down almost immediately, took the milk, and went right back to sleep. That was all he wanted. Just milk.
Later, as I read the Scripture in 1 Peter 2:2, I remembered my friend and the story she shared:
“As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby”.
Hunger is a critical part of growth. Note the part that says “desire … milk … so that you may grow! Hunger that drives growth. Hunger drives productivity.
That newborn baby wasn’t crying for attention, noise, or comfort alone, he was crying because he needed something essential for his growth. Milk was not optional; it was necessary. And until that hunger was satisfied, he would not be quiet.
In the same way, spiritual growth, and true productivity in God’s design, requires hunger. A deep desire for the Word of God. Not a casual interest. Not an occasional glance. But a craving that knows, I cannot grow without this.
This verse tells us that we are to desire the Word the way a newborn desires milk. Think about that baby: he wasn’t quiet about his need. He didn’t politely wait. He didn’t say, “Oh well, if I don’t get fed, that’s fine.” No. He screamed and screamed and screamed until his need was met.
That is the kind of hunger we are called to have for the Word of God.
A deep, burning, unrelenting desire.
We don’t stop seeking until that hunger is quenched.
This principle applies to so many areas of life. If you want to grow in prayer, go to the Word and study how people prayed. If you want to grow as a businessperson, search the Scriptures; it is full of wisdom on diligence, stewardship, and work ethic. If you want to grow in self-discipline or leadership, look at the lives of biblical leaders and how God shaped them.
There is so much in the Word of God.
That baby didn’t approach milk casually, and neither should we approach Scripture casually. We don’t come for a drop here or there when it’s convenient. We come desperate. We come hungry. We come knowing we need it to grow.
My prayer, for myself and for you, is that God would place that kind of desire inside of us. That we would become like newborn babes, craving the sincere milk of the Word. Wanting it. Seeking it. Not settling until we receive it.
May God give us greater understanding of His Word and show us how to flourish and grow through it.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.