This is Going to Be Hard

Jeremiah 1

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But God Will be With YOU!

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The book of Jeremiah is where I am in my Bible study today.  Jeremiah is known as the “weeping prophet.”  I recently heard a speaker say that in today’s language, we would call Jeremiah the DEPRESSED prophet.  I think he is right.  Poor Jeremiah!  He was a young and inexperienced man against the ENTIRE land of Israel.  Well, that is the way it felt to Jeremiah.  But what Jeremiah could bank on from the start of his prophetic ministry was that God would be with him THROUGH IT ALL. He was not alone! He would need to CLING tenaciously to that truth throughout the rest of his life.  Isn’t that a truth you and I must also cling to?  THROUGH IT ALL, GOD IS WITH US!  

What I love about Jeremiah’s first chapter is how God so clearly lays out Jeremiah’s calling.  “I knew you before I formed you…before you were born, I set you apart…”  Those precious words would comfort anyone wondering, do I have a purpose, a calling, a job to do that will make a difference?  And then Jeremiah came up with the best excuse he could think of…but God, I am too young.  God’s response to Jeremiah was beautiful, DON’T SAY THAT!  You see, spoken words have power, and God wanted that nonsense to stop.  God told Jeremiah, I will be with you wherever you go, and I will tell you what to say.  Jeremiah 1:7 AFT (Anne Farnum Translation-for what it is worth!) 

So, Jeremiah had the full force of God behind him.  He was never alone- he just had to look and see God’s presence with him.  Would it be hard for Jeremiah?  Oh yes! But God’s promise of his presence was what Jeremiah needed to hang on to with both hands.  

And then God drops a reality bomb on Jeremiah – the armies of the north are coming, and it isn’t going to be pretty.  They will even set their thrones up at the gates of this city you love.  No wonder Jeremiah was weeping and depressed.  This would not be an easy assignment- it would be sad, painful, confusing, complicated, lonely, and infuriating at times, and enough to make a grown man cry great big UGLY tears.  Won’t it be interesting to see someday those “bottles of tears” the Lord has been saving?  (Psalm 56:8)

Okay, maybe today, this resonates with you.  Maybe you can relate to Jeremiah.  Perhaps you have been given a tough assignment.  One that is already proving to be more than YOU can handle.  Possibly you have family issues that are keeping the tears flowing.  Maybe you are dealing with your insecurities and doubts.  And just perhaps, life is not the way you had hoped it would be.  And here you stand wondering why such a challenging assignment, God?  Why me?  The depressed big ugly tears are flowing far too often.  

For Jeremiah, God gave some incredible and inspiring action points in Chapter 1:17-19.  So let me paraphrase here- he tells Jeremiah to get up and prepare for action.  Get out of bed, Jeremiah, and stop hiding from this assignment!  And then he says these glorious words, DO NOT BE AFRAID!  For today I have made you strong.  They will fight you, but they will fail.  For I AM with you, and I will take care of you!!!!  The enemy will not prevail- can I hear a big AMEN here?

Friend, I don’t know your situation, but here is what I know.  God saw you LONG before your parents even thought of you, and he has a plan for you.  He wants you to know that no matter how HARD your lot in life is, He is with you.  You can cling mightily to that truth.  He is for you!  God loves you now and always has and always will.  He has made you strong, giving you the Holy Spirit as your mighty backbone. He will guide your feet as you submit to him, and he will take care of you.  

Why not take a minute right now and thank God for this truth?  Ask him to help you cement this truth in your heart and mind, and then cling with all you have to the faithful and trustworthy One.  GOD HAS YOU!

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