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Today’s Readings: Jeremiah 24, 27, 28, 29 ; James 4 

 

…. For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope….

 

This is the complete verse 

For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.”

‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭29‬:‭10‬-‭14‬ ‭ESV‬‬

There is a difference between what we know, and what is actually there. For the majority of my life, I have known this verse in many many respects. In one of the lowest points of my life and my wife’s life, when my son, Oliver, was a baby and we did not know if he was going to survive the next day or the next hour, a friend of ours gave us this verse to meditate on and to find strength. This verse is very powerful and it has so many deep meanings as well. But as I was reading and meditating on these passages this week, it has a more profound meaning for me.  This has been a verse in my heart since my childhood, but really held a prominent place during this period of my life. 

The majority of the time we look at this verse in Jeremiah for strength in the midst of our adversities and our weaknesses. But when we really look at the full scope of this, it gives us even more peace. It shows us that God is actually preparing things way in advance for us. He knows what’s happening far in advance. At this point, Jeremiah is telling the people about their exile and  about the people who will come and conquer them, and how God will make provisions for them. God is also showing how He will bring the people out of the exile. He even tells them specific times and how God will release everybody from exile.  

In the 24th chapter of Jeremiah, we see how God is selecting us, who are his children to be protected in the midst of adversity. He shows that doing and before the exile how he protects his figs or his people.

“After Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had taken into exile from Jerusalem Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, together with the officials of Judah, the craftsmen, and the metal workers, and had brought them to Babylon, the Lord showed me this vision: behold, two baskets of figs placed before the temple of the Lord. One basket had very good figs, like first-ripe figs, but the other basket had very bad figs, so bad that they could not be eaten. “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Like these good figs, so I will regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I have sent away from this place to the land of the Chaldeans. I will set my eyes on them for good, and I will bring them back to this land. I will build them up, and not tear them down; I will plant them, and not pluck them up. I will give them a heart to know that I am the Lord, and they shall be my people and I will be their God, for they shall return to me with their whole heart.”

‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭24‬:‭1‬-‭2‬, ‭5‬-‭7‬ ‭ESV‬‬

In Jeremiah , we have a glimpse of what is happening to the exile individuals that go into Babylon. He specifically speaks about Nebuchadnezzar . When we reference back to Daniel, we see how God has provided for Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego, and Daniel, in the midst of their exile out in Babylon. In this passage in Jeremiah, he shows how he would already protect them from everything and in this passage and Jeremiah we also see that God uses Nebuchadnezzar for his benefit. 

Whenever I read Daniel, I always would see Nebuchadnezzar as the villain. But this passage in Jeremiah shows how God can use unlikely people in unlikely places to be blessings upon us for his benefit.  

“Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face and paid homage to Daniel, and commanded that an offering and incense be offered up to him. The king answered and said to Daniel, “Truly, your God is God of gods and Lord of kings, and a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this mystery.” Then the king gave Daniel high honors and many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon.”

‭‭Daniel‬ ‭2‬:‭46‬-‭48‬ ‭ESV‬‬

This passage gives me hope, and makes me smile in the midst of adversity and hardships, which we go through on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis. Sometimes it can feel insurmountable while we’re in the moment. But then God gives us peace in revelation, and how he will provide for us. In this moment, God is showing us that he has a plan for us before we even could understand it. He had a plan for the people 70+ years before they even knew what was going to happen.  He had a plan for us,  benefiting us through him. He’s not just going to leave it to chance. He has specific plans for us. Let us take solace in his plans for us.

Be Blessed

Jeremiah, the prophet, had a difficult life. His family and friends were ready to rise up against him. They threatened to rise up against him if he continued telling about God.

I have heard the many rumors about me. They call me “The Man Who Lives in Terror.” They threaten, “If you say anything, we will report it.” Even my old friends are watching me, waiting for a fatal slip. “He will trap himself,” they say, “and then we will get our revenge on him.”
Jeremiah 20:10

But, there was something burning inside of Jeremiah, he simply could not keep quiet. He is what true ministry looks like. We are called, just as Jeremiah to speak the word of God when given the opportunity. We should not keep quiet, but speak boldly, just as Jeremiah did. Jeremiah knew that the Lord was with him.

But the Lord stands beside me like a great warrior. Before him my persecutors will stumble. They cannot defeat me. The will fail and be thoroughly humiliated. There dishonor will never be forgotten.
Jeremiah 20:11

Jeremiah’s faith let him see the nearness of God. He was in despair because he lost his friends, but his faith kept his heart on God. Above all else, he knew that God was with Him.

What an example Jeremiah is for us. When we feel fear, we need only to remember that the Lord stands beside us like a great warrior.

Today’s Reading:  Jeremiah 11-13; 2 Corinthians 12

They live in biggest house you have ever seen.  They take lavish vacations to the most beautiful and luxurious locations.  They have a garage full of expensive and exotic cars.  They have the most beautiful “model-like” spouse that has the perfect physique, looks, or appearance.   They live a life of materiality and wealth that everyone wants.  They “have it all.”

But perhaps the individuals that have these things are not “nice people.”  Perhaps they have taken profits when they should have been more generous.  Perhaps they have taken advantage and “run over” people to acquire the power and wealth they achieved for themselves.  Perhaps they have ruined the lives of their employees, teammates, competitors, or maybe even their own family to achieve the wealth they have.

How is it fair that sometimes the most ruthless and selfish people prosper?  Why does God allow this?

Jeremiah 12: 1-3 states, “Righteous are You, O Lord, when I plead with you; Yet let me talk with You about Your judgments. Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why are those happy who deal so treacherously? 2 You have planted them, yes, they have taken root; They grow, yes, they bear fruit. You are near in their mouth, But far from their mind. 3 But You, O Lord, know me; You have seen me, and You have tested my heart toward You. Pull them out like sheep for the slaughter, And prepare them for the day of slaughter.”

It can be difficult for us to see prosperity happen to who we perceive to be “bad people.”  Maybe you are jealous because you work hard to do the right things. You live a Christ-centered, faith-filled life to set an example for your children, family, and friends.  Yet, you still cannot “get ahead.”  Perhaps you are unemployed, deal with financial challenges, drive a “beat up” car that won’t start, and work at a job you hate.   What is the reward for living your life following Jesus if you don’t experience “prosperity” or a “life of luxury?”

In 2 Corinthians 12, Paul tells the people of Corinth that the “thorn in the flesh” was given to him. Paul was referring to the obstacles, challenges, and burden he carried, even though he was a prophet for Christ.  He sacrificed most of the years of his life, and ultimately gave his life for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Paul said in verse 8, “Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me.” Verse 9, “And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness. Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power for Christ may rest upon me. “ 10 Therefore I take pleasure in the infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in the persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak then I am strong.”

Scripture tells us God sees us.  He knows our sacrifices.  He feels our afflictions.  He is there with us every step of the way.  God encourages us to understand “we are our strongest when we are at what appears to us be our weakest.”  Let us not seek to be judged in this world but the “next world” in Heaven,” which will be our just reward.  Keep the faith that a life following Christ is the right path.

Today’s reading:  Jeremiah 5-7, 2 Corinthians 10

In 1997, I joined Caterpillar as a cost accountant at the transmission factory.  I knew absolutely nothing about manufacturing heavy equipment, but was eager to learn.  So like I would do with any new job, I began by familiarizing myself with the organization structure starting with the operations teams – Assembly, Case & Cover, Ring Gears, Bevel Gears, Miscellaneous Gears and Heat Treat.  Heat treat?  What in the world was that?  (I remember secretly thinking to myself.)  It didn’t take me long to learn that heat treat was the process of heating and cooling the iron.  This scientific (and very expensive process) greatly increased the strength of gears, thereby increasing the overall quality and reliability of the drivetrain.

God, the author and perfecter of human life, uses similar methods to increase our faith and improve the quality of our lives if we choose to put our faith in him.  When a precious metal is refined by fire, impurities are burned away.  In our lives, God uses trials and suffering to purify our hearts.  Ultimately, this results in us becoming more like Christ.

The genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:7).

Jeremiah 6, our scripture for today, talks about God’s attempts to refine the hearts of his people in the Old Testament.  Despite the prophet Jeremiah’s repeated attempts, however, they refused to turn from their sinful ways and submit to God.

“I have made you a tester of metals and my people the ore, that you may observe and test their ways. They are all hardened rebels, going about to slander. They are bronze and iron; they all act corruptly. The bellows blow fiercely to burn away the lead with fire, but the refining goes on in vain; the wicked are not purged out. They are called rejected silver, because the Lord has rejected them” (Jeremiah 6:27-30).

Unfortunately we know those who turn away from God and instead choose a life of sin are eternally doomed.  Our job as Christfollowers is to share with them the good news of God’s saving grace.

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved (Romans 10:9).

 

 

 

Today’s Reading: Habakkuk 1-3; 2 Corinthians 7 

The past couple of weeks have been very trying for myself and my family. My  family here in Illinois and my family in Texas.  There have been numerous trials and tribulations that we have endured these last couple weeks. Sometimes it feels as if we were in a vacuum and no one else understands what we were going through.  One of the best things that God has given us is the connection with others which allows us to become vulnerable with each other.

Just the other day while chatting with a friend, we were talking about the start of the new school year and homecoming and the need to connect with our kids.  As we spoke we understood that we are going through something very similar.  We are not alone, even if we feel like asking the question “ Are you there?”   We can all feel isolated. 

This is how Habakkuk felt.

‭‭Habakkuk‬ ‭1‬:‭1‬-‭4‬ ‭

“The problem as God gave Habakkuk to see it: God, how long do I have to cry out for help before you listen? How many times do I have to yell, “Help! Murder! Police!” before you come to the rescue? Why do you force me to look at evil, stare trouble in the face day after day? Anarchy and violence break out, quarrels and fights all over the place. Law and order fall to pieces. Justice is a joke. The wicked have the righteous hamstrung and stand justice on its head.”

We are not alone.  We are not the first to got through this.  We don’t have to endure it by ourselves.   As soon as Habakkuk asks this question God answers.  

‭‭Habakkuk‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭MSG‬‬

“A prayer of the prophet Habakkuk, with orchestra: God, I’ve heard what our ancestors say about you, and I’m stopped in my tracks, down on my knees. Do among us what you did among them. Work among us as you worked among them. And as you bring judgment, as you surely must, remember mercy. * * *”

 

‭‭Habakkuk‬ ‭3‬:‭17‬-‭19‬ ‭MSG‬‬

“Though the cherry trees don’t blossom and the strawberries don’t ripen, Though the apples are worm-eaten and the wheat fields stunted, Though the sheep pens are sheepless and the cattle barns empty, I’m singing joyful praise to God. I’m turning cartwheels of joy to my Savior God. Counting on God’s Rule to prevail, I take heart and gain strength. I run like a deer. I feel like I’m king of the mountain! (For congregational use, with a full orchestra.)”

Whether we receive the answer that we want or not, God gives us peace and joy in His plan and purpose for us.  

Let us remember that God is listening and has resolution and peace for those whom love him.  

Be blessed