Jeremiah 41:11-45:5

I never knew how much in common Baruch and I have when it comes to ministry and our relationship with God because of that ministry. God is gracious and leads with kindness and favour and that is what makes it all work. For two years I prayed asking God to move in my life and for two years nothing. When He did move, it was an amazing thing to see and experience.

When Jeremiah finished telling all the people the whole Message that their God had sent him to give them—all these words—Azariah son of Hoshaiah and Johanan son of Kareah, backed by all the self-important men, said to Jeremiah, “Liar! Our God never sent you with this message telling us not to go to Egypt and live there. Baruch son of Neriah is behind this. He has turned you against us. He’s playing into the hands of the Babylonians so we’ll either end up being killed or taken off to exile in Babylon.” Jeremiah 43:1-3 MSG

Here is Baruch, a sidekick to Jeremiah, and he is getting blamed for all the things Jeremiah is saying. Jeremiah still gets no honour as the prophet.

You say, ‘These are bad times for me! It’s one thing after another. God is piling on the pain. I’m worn out and there’s no end in sight.’ – Jeremiah 45:3 MSG

Baruch declares these times to be bad times – I have done the same. At the end of the day, I realise just how honourable it is to be a servant of God, for Baruch, a scribe to a Prophet. How much closer could he be in receiving words from the mouth of an angel.

So forget about making any big plans for yourself. Things are going to get worse before they get better. But don’t worry. I’ll keep you alive through the whole business. – Isaiah 45:5 MSG

This promise from God really matters. It mattered in my life too. God sees loyalty and that gained Baruch honour beyond anything he could have anticipated. I have seen the same honour in my life and am looking forward to seeing more favour as I continue to faithfully follow God.

Father, I do not miss the pain that growing comes with in my walk with You. I know I am going to have some more pain along the way. I love Jeremiah’s faithfulness and love how You have revealed Baruch’s thoughts for they are encouraging and they strengthen my own resolve. I look forward to serving You today and pray that I may be a blessing to all I meet along the way.

Erwin (evanlaar1922)

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Jeremiah 28:1-31:20

“So do not be afraid, Jacob, my servant; do not be dismayed, Israel,” says the Lord. “For I will bring you home again from distant lands, and your children will return from their exile. Israel will return to a life of peace and quiet, and no one will terrorize them. For I am with you and will save you,” says the Lord. Jeremiah 30:10&11 NLT

In their bondage, God asked the Israelites to seek Him wholeheartedly. And He promised to listen to their prayers. Lord, help me not to give into fear. Give me the faith to rise above my circumstances. Help me to remember that You are with me.

“This is what the Lord says: “When I bring Israel home again from captivity and restore their fortunes, Jerusalem will be rebuilt on its ruins, and the palace reconstructed as before. There will be joy and songs of thanksgiving, and I will multiply my people, not diminish them; I will honor them, not despise them.” Jeremiah 30:18-19 NLT

What am I allowing to hold me captive that I need to ask the Lord to free me from? Fear, worry…it can be a daily surrender to give those back to the Lord.

“Long ago the Lord said to Israel: “I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself. I will rebuild you, my virgin Israel. You will again be happy and dance merrily with your tambourines.” Jeremiah 31:3-4 NLT

Dear Father, I am holding onto Your promises. Forgive me when I turn to other things. I can be so forgetful. I trust in You. I am grateful for Your promise to restore. You are good. Your goodness pursues me. Amen.

Amy(amyctanner)

Jeremiah 16:10-20:18

I am not a black and white kind of guy. I have felt that being moldable has far to many advantages and that kind of lands me in the gray. I have found myself staying away from famous verses in my daily readings and today, I think I hit most of them. Not only that, I have been taught a valuable lesson.

God told Jeremiah, “Up on your feet! Go to the potter’s house. When you get there, I’ll tell you what I have to say.”

So I went to the potter’s house, and sure enough, the potter was there, working away at his wheel. Whenever the pot the potter was working on turned out badly, as sometimes happens when you are working with clay, the potter would simply start over and use the same clay to make another pot. – Jeremiah 18:1-4 MSG

It all starts here, at this very famous rendering of a potter’s house.

First thought – living a life of honour is not about living a perfect life. Living a life of honour means I am living in a way that lets Jesus break off the old life so He can make me into a new vessel with renewed purpose and a greater capacity to do what He has called me to do.

Lesson learned – Jesus does not define me by my brokenness. Jesus sees my full potential to honour God and serve others. Somewhere, right in the middle is a process called sanctification and it is here that I need to be moldable. Why am I still holding on to areas of my life that I do not want Him to change or shape? I can think of quite a few areas where He has molded me. I do find freedom in all of them. What is up with me holding back?

God said to me, “Go, buy a clay pot. Then get a few leaders from the people and a few of the leading priests and go out to the Valley of Ben-hinnom, just outside the Potsherd Gate, and preach there what I tell you. – Jeremiah 19:1-2 MSG

Jeremiah amazes me. He is a nobody, in fact, he is weird by any definition. Yet, he has the honour and authority to invite key leadership to meet him in a valley, outside the city and hear what he has to say – that is impressive to see God honouring His servant – Jeremiah is a least an equal to these individuals.

Father, I have heard so many sermons on who you are as a potter. I love how many try and capture Your essence in this job and I am sure, even as I am today, that we never quite get all of it. I am thankful for how You reveal Yourself and thank You for what You have shared with me today.

Erwin (evanlaar1922)

Jeremiah 38, 39, 52; 1 Peter 2

When I see the words “honour” and “love” in one verse, it immediately grabs my attention.

Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the Emperor. – 1 Peter 2:17 HCSB

I am called to love others who have made the decision to follow Jesus and with them I am called to have a closer relationship. I get what Peter means when he commands me to fear God. Out of the fear of God comes the call to honour those in leadership and everyone else.

Honouring and loving are the keys to unity and harmony in human relationships. In the Godhead, in the church, in marriage, and in any relationship, honour and love are the basis for unity.

Exclude Jesus and I am more motivated by self-interest. Include Jesus and I am motivated by faith, hope and love and it results in self-sacrifice. My honouring and loving enables me to endure suffering because my motivation is not in this world – they are in my heavenly hope and the love that God generates in me.

Honouring in itself is an act of love and I am commanded not to love the world. While I should honour those in leadership without conflict with others, to do so takes wisdom. God promises to give me wisdom as I love to seek it out.

True honouring is not building up anyone with flattery, but in truth that is not only proclaimed but practiced in love. I love this call from Peter as he provides an example of what that sounds like.

Dear friends, I urge you as strangers and temporary residents to abstain from fleshly desires that war against you.^[r]Conduct yourselves honorably among the Gentiles,^[s] so that in a case where they speak against you as those who do what is evil, they will, by observing your good works, glorify God on the day of visitation. – 1 Peter 2:11-12 HCSB

Father, these days I need wisdom from You more than I ever have felt before. Wisdom in how to honour and wisdom to understand what love looks like. I want individuals to know that I honour You more than anything and part of that means honouring those in leadership even though I struggle so much with how they are leading. Walk with me Lord so that as I begin to look like You more and more each day, may You be glorified. Thank You.

Erwin (evanlaar1922)

Jeremiah 25, 35, 36, 45; Psalm 133; James 3

I get a taste of the times by reading Jeremiah 25, 35, 36, 45–a sampling over a span of chapters. Jeremiah confronts again:

³ “For the past twenty-three years […] the Lord has been giving me his messages. I have faithfully passed them on to you, but you have not listened.

⁴ “Again and again the Lord has sent you his servants, the prophets, but you have not listened or even paid attention. ⁵ Each time the message was this: ‘Turn from the evil road you are traveling and from the evil things you are doing. Only then will I let you live in this land that the Lord gave to you and your ancestors forever. ⁶ Do not provoke my anger by worshiping idols you made with your own hands. Then I will not harm you.’

⁷ “But you would not listen to me,” says the Lord. “You made me furious by worshiping idols you made with your own hands, bringing on yourselves all the disasters you now suffer. (Jeremiah 25:3-7, NLT)

(I read of the cup of God’s anger, and it’s not an only mention in the Bible. The cup is mentioned in several books, and in each, it is terrifying.)

To another family, a promise from God in response to their obedience.

And in audacity, King Jehoiakim’s response to God:

²¹ The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll. Jehudi brought it from Elishama’s room and read it to the king as all his officials stood by. ²² It was late autumn, and the king was in a winterized part of the palace, sitting in front of a fire to keep warm. ²³ Each time Jehudi finished reading three or four columns, the king took a knife and cut off that section of the scroll. He then threw it into the fire, section by section, until the whole scroll was burned up. ²⁴ Neither the king nor his attendants showed any signs of fear or repentance at what they heard. ²⁵ Even when Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah begged the king not to burn the scroll, he wouldn’t listen. (Jeremiah 36:21-25, NLT)

Father God, may I never take your word so lightly. If your promises and word are trustworthy, and they are, they should be the direction I seek to draw even closer to you. I am glad your word doesn’t change, and that you are true. You are the same yesterday, today and tomorrow, and I can walk in full confidence of your promise.

¹³ If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom. ¹⁴ But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don’t cover up the truth with boasting and lying. ¹⁵ For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic. ¹⁶ For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind.

¹⁷ But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere. ¹⁸ And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness. (James 3:13-18, NLT)

Lord, help me to live a life undistracted, but with a keen kingdom focus.

Courtney (66books365)