Pray:
Abba, I want to hear Your voice and know Your heart. I want to reflect Your heart to the world.
Read:
Jeremiah 29:1-14
Reflect:
How has Jeremiah's message changed?
It's 597 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar II, king of Babylon, has laid siege to Jerusalem. The royal court, senior officials, and craftsmen have been taken into exile (2). The unthinkable has happened. Jeremiah's repeated and unheeded warnings have been fulfilled.
Everything has changed, including Jeremiah's tone of voice. He writes a letter to the exiles, full of warmth, encouragement and positivity. You're going to be there for several generations, so make the most of it and enjoy the experience. Seek the welfare of the city. This place inhabited by your enemies, the center of alien culture, has become your home. Be a blessing to the public life of the city. No need to panic, struggle to escape, or pray for deliverance. You are now safe in God's strange purposes.
Discerning God's will for our lives may, at times, seem baffling. For our good, he will take us through experiences and places that are apparently hostile to us and yet in the center of his plan for us. This feels like a terrible paradox, but one that countless Christians have tasted in times of distress.
Apply:
Ask God to help you to discern his will and trust his heart, even when the way is difficult.
Pray:
Father, even when Your message is not what I expect, I want to hear You.
