How's life treating you these days? Do you find yourself in the eye of some storm or in the center of those tribulations Jesus spoke about in the Bible? Well don't give up and don't give in because God has you in the palm of His hand.
In the scripture verse above, Jeremiah speaks this prophetic word right in the middle of God's pronounced judgment on Israel. In other words, things were going really bad for the nation Israel when God had His prophet speak these words of encouragement to His people.
Life itself has a tendency to bring on stress and worry - marriage issues, family issues, job issues, bills, bills, bills. You name it, we all go through it. It's our perception of these issues that determines our physical and emotional response to them. If we have no hope in anything or anyone we feel insecure, and it's those insecurities that cause our anxieties.
God says that He wants to give us a peace that's beyond our own understanding. He tells us, Don't worry about your life, about what you will eat or drink, or about the clothes you will wear, there is something much more important than that. What could possibly be more important than those things to us? He goes on to answer that question, He says life itself is more important than these earthly concerns. Your spiritual life, your eternal life is more important than these things. God tells us, look at the birds, they don't worry about such things. Why not? Because God meets their every need. He finishes this verse by saying "Are you not much more valuable than they?", the answer to this question is an emphatic "Yes".
Sometimes our stress is brought on by the unknown. We don't know what the future holds for us. We have all these expectations, all these desires, hopes and dreams but we don't know which of them will ever be fulfilled. So we struggle to make them happen under our own finite power.
I recently applied for a promotion at work. The promotion process entailed filling out an application, taking a written exam and sitting through an interview (only if I passed the exam). Now I've done this before, but it's been years, and in the past it's been a very stressful process. Maybe you've had the same type of experience and can relate to what I'm saying. But this time it was different, I set in my heart and mind that I was putting my future in God's hands, that I was taking Him at His word. I am believing that He has the best possible future already laid out for me, so I'm going to abide by His will for my life. If I get the promotion great, but it will only be because it's part of His original plan for me. If I don't get it that's okay too, because that will be His plan for me as well. What a relief, talk about taking the pressure off! I have been at peace through the entire process.
I prepared the best I could for the exam - I felt at ease while I was taking it, which was not normal for me, and when I was finished I prayed, "Lord your will be done". I received an e-mail the following week with the date and time of my interview (I passed the test, praise God!). With a little preparation and a lot of prayer I went into the interview relaxed. What a complete change from previous interview experiences I've had. I felt the peace of God, the peace that comes from knowing that my life is in my heavenly Father's hands. If this promotion is meant to be for me then it will happen. If not, then that must be the Lord's will for me at this time in my life. I will trust Him with my future because He is my hope. For now, I just wait.
What about you? Do you belong to God? Have you given your life over to Him? Do you consider yourself one of His children? Then He commands you saying, don't be anxious about anything, in other words, don't worry about it. The above verse from Jeremiah is for you, God wants you to trust in Him. Do not strive, do not fret, instead walk in faith. No matter what your storm is right now, or what tribulation you're going through, it's no match for God's promises.
If you're not sure about where you stand with God, if you are struggling with your day-to-day life and you want the peace I'm talking about here, all you have to do is call out to God with a sincere heart. Ask Him to reveal Himself to you in a real way and to show you where you're failing. When this happens you will begin to realize that you have a need that only God can fulfill, that need is salvation through Jesus Christ. The Word of God (the Bible) is full of promises, and God is true to His word. However, His promises are for His children, those who have surrendered their own will to His perfect will. Find the peace you've been seeking in the God who has promised you a future and a hope. Let Christ be your hope today!
God Bless and Press On
Larry
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