EXPAND TO READ: JEREMIAH 39 (HCSB)
PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN (verse 18b): In the latter part of this verse, You say “because you trusted in Me, you will keep your life like the spoils of war.” I have often failed to trust You in my actions as well as my thought life since coming to faith, Father. Although it is less often nowadays than earlier in my faith, I do often find this as a struggle of mine. Please forgive me for this lack of trust, Father. Remind me that not only are You in control, but that Your will for my life is also far better than anything this world or my selfish desires should try to bring into my life. Remind me to always keep my focus on Your truths, so that I do not falter in my trusting of You again, Father.
PROMISE (verses 6-8): Just like Jeremiah prophesied, You were faithful to the promises You gave to King Zedekiah about his choices in this war with Babylon. Zedekiah chose to fight then flee instead of giving himself up for his people. As a result, the city was burned to the ground and all of his sons were killed, leaving no legacy for Zedekiah on the throne. You gave him this promise many times if he had not giving himself up to Babylon and he chose the path of death instead of life. You showed us that You are faithful to Your promises by following through with what was prophesied to Zedekiah through Jeremiah. Thank You for Your promises, Father, but also for Your faithfulness in those promises even when the results are on the negative side instead of the positive side of life. You gave Zedekiah two paths to choose from, each with completely opposite results. He chose the path of selfishness instead of grace, leading to the demise of his kingdom.
ATTITUDE (verse 4): Father, I often live in the fear of my flesh and this world instead of living in the strength and hope that You provide. Just like Zedekiah chose to flee in this verse, I too often choose to flee from Your will for my life. Help me to have a trusting attitude towards You instead of trying to carve my own path, Father. Help me to realize that Your will for my life is always better than my own. Remind me that Your promises to me will always be fulfilled, even when I think I can change the course of my life through my own strength. Help me to have an attitude that leans on Your truths for my life instead of my own selfish desires, Father.
COMMAND (verse 18): Your command is quite simple, yet oh so difficult for someone as pride filled as me to follow. You simply command us to trust in You. The reason I say this is difficult for someone with as much pride as me is because I often think that I can do so much on my own, regardless of the path I feel You may want me on. I often let my pride stand before me, typically making trouble for my life instead of trusting in You fully. Help me to be better at following this command, Father. I know I will falter, but my hope is that those days of prideful weakness will become less and less as my maturity in my faith grows.
EXAMPLE (verses 11-2, 17-18): In these 4 verses, we get the fulfillment of what happens when we are faithful to You. Jeremiah remained faithful to You in prophesying Your truths to King Zedekiah. Although Jeremiah did face a lot of difficulties along his path, to include being beaten, put in jail, and nearly killed, he never faltered from his faithfulness towards You, Father. The example of faithfulness Jeremiah provides us is so amazing, but what’s even more amazing is the faithfulness You’ve provided to him through it all. Even though he was tested many times with painful temptations to change his ways from this world, he never ceased to keep his focus on You through it all. In the end, he was rewarded as a result of his faithfulness, showing that the amount of faithfulness we put towards You will be multiplied exponentially when returned to us. Throughout the turmoil of this war with Babylon, You assured him his safety and this came to fruition by the King of Babylon himself as a direct order to his guards to ensure Jeremiah’s protection. How amazingly blessed this example is to us, Father! Thank You for Your faithfulness.
*DAILY NOTE: A big fault of mine is trust; trust in myself, trust in those close to me, trust in strangers, and even trust in You at times, Father. I am horrible at embracing the Spirit of trust and I am sorry for that. I have gotten better, but I have failed so much in my life at trusting others that it has caused relationship issues, depression, anger, anxiety, and even a disconnect in my relationship with you (only from my side, of course). Thank You for always being faithful and trustworthy through ALL things, Father, even though I often struggle with being accepting of both. Thank You for always being a rock in my life, even though I have often tried to stand in the mud.
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
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