January 18, 2021 – Jeremiah 29:12-13

Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you.  You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:12-13.

We find great comfort in the verse 11, and often quote it: For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11.  

What precipitated that verse?  It was the news of captivity in Babylon for seventy years for the Jews.  The time allotted would be long enough to make homes and plant gardens for food. Life will go on.

When do we call upon the Lord and pray to our Father in Heaven?  When do we come to the end of our being?  Who else can we turn to for comfort, rest, to be our ‘hiding place’?  O Lord, I call on you to fill us with your love and your Presence so that we are totally yours, heart and soul.  In the name of Jesus, I pray!  Amen.

For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, that we may share His holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.  Hebrews 12:10-11.  

Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord,  and He will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:3-4.

I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile. Jeremiah 29:14.