Jeremiah 24: 6-7 For I will set mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land: and I will build them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up. And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the Lord: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart.
Our God’s a very thoughtful, caring, merciful, forgiving Being. Sometimes though His actions seem eccentric and back to front. Guess that’s because His ways are different to and higher than ours. Take Today’s Bit: The people He promised to look upon for good, are those He caused to be taken captive to Babylon, while Zedekiah, king of Judah, his cohorts and the rest of Jerusalem, would either be scattered far and wide, cursed forever, or consumed by the sword, famine and pestilence and eradicated from the promised land.. Most of us would have done it the other way; keep the ones we intend to save, and let the ones marked for destruction be taken captive. But that’s why He’s God. Unlike us, He lays very intricate plans that aren’t always what they seem to be, and usually take oodles of time to come to fruition. The people taken away captive must have bemoaned their fate, but in fact, they were the lucky ones. Later, the Lord showed Jeremiah two baskets of figs, one ripe and edible, the other rotten, and said; ‘Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are carried away captive of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place unto the land of the Chaldeans for their good.’ Wow! The Lord actually meant it for their good, though I doubt any would have accepted that reasoning at the time, since logically, being taken away from your home as a captive can never be considered a good thing. But that’s the way the Lord operates; what others might mean for our harm, He causes to turn out for our good. And we need to understand this principle so that when evil, wrong or unlucky things happen to us, we don’t look upon them as being the end of the world, and weep and moan the ‘why me’ song. Why would He bring evil against us if we’re sincerely trying to be faithful and obedient eh, especially since He’s said that the thoughts He has towards us are for good and not evil? (Jer.29:11) So even if circumstances look real bleak Friends, that’s no reason to lose faith or give up on God. Rather, that’s the time to shore it up, raise your hopes and strengthen your belief mechanism. Clichés like, the darkest hour is the one before the dawn, and every dark cloud has a silver lining have stood the test of time because they’re true. Friends, God always has a good reason for whatever He allows in our lives. We’ve just got to trust Him. It’s not always easy, but always beneficial. So please take heart and remember there’s no problem so overwhelming that the Lord can’t solve. No pain so acute that He can’t quell. And no situation; none whatsoever, where He’s not with us, for He’s promised never to leave or forsake us once we stay obedient to His Word. Much LOVE!…when we stand strong during adversity…we’ll encourage others to do likewise…
Our God’s a very thoughtful, caring, merciful, forgiving Being. Sometimes though His actions seem eccentric and back to front. Guess that’s because His ways are different to and higher than ours. Take Today’s Bit: The people He promised to look upon for good, are those He caused to be taken captive to Babylon, while Zedekiah, king of Judah, his cohorts and the rest of Jerusalem, would either be scattered far and wide, cursed forever, or consumed by the sword, famine and pestilence and eradicated from the promised land.. Most of us would have done it the other way; keep the ones we intend to save, and let the ones marked for destruction be taken captive. But that’s why He’s God. Unlike us, He lays very intricate plans that aren’t always what they seem to be, and usually take oodles of time to come to fruition. The people taken away captive must have bemoaned their fate, but in fact, they were the lucky ones. Later, the Lord showed Jeremiah two baskets of figs, one ripe and edible, the other rotten, and said; ‘Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are carried away captive of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place unto the land of the Chaldeans for their good.’ Wow! The Lord actually meant it for their good, though I doubt any would have accepted that reasoning at the time, since logically, being taken away from your home as a captive can never be considered a good thing. But that’s the way the Lord operates; what others might mean for our harm, He causes to turn out for our good. And we need to understand this principle so that when evil, wrong or unlucky things happen to us, we don’t look upon them as being the end of the world, and weep and moan the ‘why me’ song. Why would He bring evil against us if we’re sincerely trying to be faithful and obedient eh, especially since He’s said that the thoughts He has towards us are for good and not evil? (Jer.29:11) So even if circumstances look real bleak Friends, that’s no reason to lose faith or give up on God. Rather, that’s the time to shore it up, raise your hopes and strengthen your belief mechanism. Clichés like, the darkest hour is the one before the dawn, and every dark cloud has a silver lining have stood the test of time because they’re true. Friends, God always has a good reason for whatever He allows in our lives. We’ve just got to trust Him. It’s not always easy, but always beneficial. So please take heart and remember there’s no problem so overwhelming that the Lord can’t solve. No pain so acute that He can’t quell. And no situation; none whatsoever, where He’s not with us, for He’s promised never to leave or forsake us once we stay obedient to His Word. Much LOVE!…when we stand strong during adversity…we’ll encourage others to do likewise…
SCRIP-BITS 