A Closer Look at Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, 

thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Jeremiah 29:11 (NKJV)

This verse is one of the most known and quoted verses in the Bible.  It has been used many times to bring encouragement to people facing difficult times...and rightly so!  It shows the heart of our Father God who takes pleasure in blessing His children!  I recently came upon this verse because God laid another verse a few verses later on my mind, and I was on a quest to find out where that verse was in the Bible.

One recent morning before the sun rose, God woke me up to pray and intercede for someone. When I asked God how I was to pray for this person, I heard in my spirit, "That he would seek Me and find Me when he seeks for Me with His whole heart." I did not remember where that verse was found, so I got up and looked for it. I found it in Jeremiah 29:13.  I immediately recognized that it was just past Jeremiah 29:11 that everyone quotes for encouragement.  I thought about how so many people quote what God does for us, giving us a hope for a great future, but how often do we emphasize what He asks us to do?  Let's look at the two verses immediately following Jeremiah 29:11:

¹² Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.  ¹³ And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.

Many quote Jeremiah 29:11 when they are going through hard times, but how many quote the next two verses? How many make a decision to call on the Lord in prayer, knowing He will listen? How many seek Him with their whole heart during a time when their hearts are so broken?  That's what God is calling us to do! In fact, it is during those times of "captivity" that He asks us to do just that.

I went back and read the beginning of the chapter and found out that this was a letter written by Jeremiah in Jerusalem to those Jews who were in Babylon--away from their home land and in captivity.  No matter why they were in captivity, God tells them in verse seven to pray for peace in the place where they were:

⁷ And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace.

I find it interesting that God said He was the one who caused them to be taken captive. That messes with a lot of people's theology, so we'll just let it sit! At any rate, God tells them to pray for the peace of the place where they are in bondage and they will have peace there.  How many of us complain about the people around us that seem to be holding us captive instead of praying for them?  This is a different perspective: Pray for those who do you harm to have peace, and then you, too, will have peace! It makes sense if you think about it, but it sure does not come naturally when someone hurts you.  That's why we have to seek God and let Him do it through us. Like another verse says, "He is our peace, who has broken down every wall!" (See Ephesians 2:14).

It is not until the next chapter that God promises to bring His children in Babylon to their promised land.  Praise God for the hope He gives us during the midst of our trials! Thanks be to the Lord for hearing us when we cry out to Him and drawing us to seek Him when we are faced with adversities in life! His gift of peace in our land of captivity never ceases to amaze me! What a joy to know that He promises to bring us through these times to our "promised land"....that being the calling on our life for ministry on earth AND the ultimate gift of eternal life in Heaven!  Enjoy the journey, friends!

His Mercies Are New Every Morning!

This morning I woke up before my alarm went off with the thought, "His mercies are new every morning!" I got up to go find out exactly where that is in the Bible. I found out that it is right in the middle of the book of Lamentations. Lamentations is a book written by the prophet Jeremiah that records his grief over the captivity of Israel. He grieves almost to the point of despair. However, in the midst of that despair, he recalls God's mercies and thus has hope. Look at the passage with me:

Lament. 3:22-32
Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed,
Because His compassions fail not.
[23] They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.
[24] "The Lord is my portion," says my soul,
"Therefore I hope in Him!"

[25] The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,
To the soul who seeks Him.
[26] It is good that one should hope and wait quietly
For the salvation of the Lord.
[27] It is good for a man to bear
The yoke in his youth.

[28] Let him sit alone and keep silent,
Because God has laid it on him;
[29] Let him put his mouth in the dust--
There may yet be hope.
[30] Let him give his cheek to the one who strikes him,
And be full of reproach.

[31] For the Lord will not cast off forever.
[32] Though He causes grief,
Yet He will show compassion
According to the multitude of His mercies.

So many times we mull over in our minds thoughts of how bad things are. With each toxic thought, we spin deeper into despair. That is exactly why this passage basically tells us to stop, keep our mouths shut and wait on God. Think about it, no matter how bad your situation is, you have not been consumed if you are still breathing and reading this blog! That's because of His mercies that are new every morning!

When you wake up tomorrow, think about this. Thank God for His mercies that give you a fresh start each day if you only accept it. Wow! Thank you, Father God!!

Happy Resurrection Day!!

"Jesus said unto her, 'I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.' " John 11:25

This was the verse that God laid on my grandmother's heart August 4, 1955, the day my grandfather met his maker just two weeks after he made Jesus the Lord of his life. That morning, my Grandmother Barron was scheduled to speak for a women's meeting at a church. While she was in route to the meeting, she couldn't get John 11:25 off her mind, so instead of delivering the message she had prepared, she talked to the women about Jesus being the resurection and the life. Little did she know that my grandfather's flight had a fire in the engine and crashed at the same time she was with the ladies.

While Grandpa was going down, he recited the Lord's prayer over the radio to the control tower. Though I do not understand why his time to go was that day before I ever came into the world to meet him, I am so grateful to know he surrendered his life to Christ and that one day I will meet him in Heaven--all because of Jesus' death and resurrection on the third day that we celebrate today!

Only God knows the length of our days on this earth. On that same flight was supposed to be one of the superintendents of the Assemblies of God. He was told right before take off that he had a phone call and if he were to take it he would miss the flight. He chose to take it. God was ready for my grandfather to come home, but he had more for this minister to do on earth. Either way, it was all because of Christ's resurrection!

Praise God for a lifestyle of Christian living that reminds us that we have hope because of that day over 2,000 years ago when our Lord and Savior conquered death, hell and the grave! That's a whole lot better than bunnies, candy and eggs!

Trust God...BYSSIW

Lately it seems that God is bringing up the topic of trusting Him quite a bit. I know it's on our money (at least for now!), "In God We Trust," but do we? I have many friends who are going through circumstances of monumental proportions that consequently are bringing them to a test of their trust in God. The circumstances I know of include court hearings, cancer, wayward children, possible foreclosures, divorce, death of loved ones, and on and on the list goes.

One of my friends I am asking you to pray for, Dick Bowley, has a blog on which he journals his journey through leukemia. God is pouring through him as he writes his entries. I feel as though I'm praying for a miracle for my daily devotional author. He calls those of us who read the daily posts and pray for him his POP team (power of prayer). (You can join the POP team by going to http://www.carepages.com/carepages/DickBowley) I read it to see how to pray for him, but I find myself encouraged and ministered to each time. On today's entry, he retold the story of Jesus telling Peter who had just toiled all night fishing and catching nothing to launch out into deeper waters and cast his net. Peter responded with BYSSIW - Because You said so, I will!

Then I read a blog entry by another friend, Amy Woods, about the same subject. (You may read it, too by going to http://life275style.blogspot.com/2008/12/life-275-stylepsalm-275-that-is.html.) On the blog post, she talks about Psalm 27:5 -"For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock." There it is again...a reminder that we can trust HIM! He is our only sure foundation TO trust. Thank God, we have Him!

As I go about God's assignments for me today, I will be praying for you and all my friends to be strengthened to go through the trusting test. Please join me in prayer for one in particular, my good friend, Claude Parent. He has recently found out that cancer that he got through once has returned. Thank you for joining with me to pray for wisdom for treatments, endurance for the race and healing for every fiber of his body.

Lord, all our hope is in YOU! We proclaim today that in You, and in You only, we place our trust!!

Pray for Gaza!

This morning I went to www.crosswalk.com to read my assignment for the day in my Bible reading plan, and my eyes fell on a link about a Baptist Church being damaged in the midst of the bombing between Hamas and Israel. (If you click on the title of this blog, it will take you to the article.) As a born-again Christian so many thoughts race through my mind as I think about what is unfolding before our very eyes! Wow! Think of it!

Growing up I used to hear sermons all the time about the rapture of the church. I remember reel to reel movies being shown at church all about the Lord's soon return. Since then I have not heard much about getting ready for the Lord's return. Now things are changing. At least they better! All those things they used to preach about are actually happening, and they are increasing at an alarming rate. I don't mean to scare anyone. If your heart is right with God all this news should excite you. If you are not sure, it is time! (I recommend going to www.powertochange.com.) Remember, Jesus' return to take His bride, the church, to Heaven is our "Blessed Hope." (See Titus 2:13.)

Let this blog be a reminder to you to do as the Bible commands us and "pray for the peace of Jerusalem." The only way there will be peace is when the "New Jerusalem" is set up. That means when we pray for peace in Jerusalem, we are actually praying for the Lord to come! In the meantime, let us also remember to pray for the Christians in the area, like this Baptist church that happened to be right in the midst of the crossfire. We need to also pray for the Jews and Muslims to find the true Prince of Peace as we have. Jesus is the world's only HOPE!