EXPAND TO READ: JEREMIAH 43 (HCSB)
PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN (verse 2): Your people asked Jeremiah for the truth about their way ahead from God. They said they would obey this truth whether it seems to be pleasant or unpleasant. In this specific verse, it’s quite obvious they lied about that and actually went into this request with a pre-conceived notion of what they wanted back from You, Father. I have done this often since coming to faith. I’ll go into prayer with You making a request, but in my mind have the expectation of what the response from You “should” be. Forgive me for trying to drive and bend You to my will instead of the other way around, Father. Forgive me for trying to assume Your will for my life and then sometimes getting upset or rebelling when my assumptions do not match what You want from me.
PROMISE (verses 9-10): After Your people disobeyed You, You never faltered from Your promise to them. You assured them that if they went to Egypt instead of staying in Judah, that their demise would come. In this Scripture, You followed through on that promise with little “easter eggs” of signs and foretelling of the things to come to them for their disobedience. You promised them that Your servant, Nebuchadnezzar, would make his way there to fulfill Your promise of their destruction and suffering in Egypt.
ATTITUDE (verse 2): Just like my sin confession, I often have an attitude of assumption and disobedience towards Your will for my life, Father. Help me to change these poor attitudes of mine so that I become more obedient to what You want me to do, but also so that I no longer live in assumptions of what Your will for my life is, Father. For those times that I do make assumptions, please help me to avoid refusal of Your truths which may or may not align with my assumptions. Help me to not be like Your people in this Scripture, who assumed Jeremiah was lying when he gave them Your truths about their way ahead in this life. Help me to live in an attitude of acceptance of Your will for my life instead of persistent rebellion.
COMMAND (verse 7): Your command here is quite simple and has been repeated many, many times throughout Scripture. Quite simply, You command us to obey Your voice, Father. You command us to follow You with obedience to Your word and Your truth for our lives. Help me to be better at embracing this command, Father. Help me to first and foremost be better at discernment of Your will for my life, but to also be better at being obedient to Your will for my life.
EXAMPLE (verses 1, 8-13): As always thus far, Jeremiah provides us with a perfect example of faithfulness towards You and the messages You want him to relay to Your people. Is Jeremiah perfect? Definitely not. Jesus was the only perfect being in the flesh to walk this earth. Jeremiah does, however, show us that even the imperfect can be used as a tool for Your kingdom’s glory through their faithfulness. Jeremiah did not sway from speaking Your truth to Your people, even after they refused to believe many times that his words were from You. Even when he went through great suffering due to Your people’s disobedience, he remained faithful to speaking Your words to them. Thank You so much for this example of how faithfulness can be lived out even through our imperfections, Father.
*DAILY NOTE: This was a very short chapter in Jeremiah, but it had so much meat to it. Jeremiah shows us that even in a world that is against You and disobedient to You, he could stay faithful. Jeremiah shows us what it is to remain true to Your will for our lives, even when the short-term picture doesn’t seem to be bright. This Scripture shows us that the big picture You see for our lives is always better if we are faithful to You. Your people refused to believe that what Jeremiah was speaking to them was Your will for their lives because they were stuck in their flesh and in fear of their circumstances instead of living righteously and faithfully with You as their compass. Help me to be better at allowing You to navigate my way in this life, Father, so that I do not continue to stray from Your path for long periods of time, again. I know I will falter here and there, but please continue to redirect me back to Your will for my life so that those mistakes become smaller and fewer as I progress in Spiritual maturity.
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
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