Thursday 24 Mar 2022

March 24: Jeremiah 7:21-26

Key Verse: Jeremiah 7:23
but I gave them this command: obey me, and I will be your God and you will be my people. Walk in obedience to all I command you, that it may go well with you.

Devotion:
God spoke very specific words to Jeremiah so he would tell the people the truth about what they were are were not doing in their lives. The people were still in disarray after they left Egypt and their rulers; even though Moses had given them so much direction and confirmation about how God loved them, they still chose to not believe and to not obey. Why? Because they were not facing so much hardship in their lives!

When we face hardships it makes us think about what we are doing and what is happening around us. We tend to see a whole lot clearer; but there are also times when we get lost in our thoughts, in our sorrow and in the feeling we carry around because of this. Jeremiah had the task of opening up the hearts and minds of the people by telling them what God was trying to get through to them.

How frustrating it must be for God when He faces a people who will not listen and will not obey. A people who don’t trust what God is telling them, a people who question everything because they cannot get their hearts and minds around what is happening! God does not necessarily want us to understand everything, but He does want us to listen to Him and obey Him!

God has this plan for each of us and unless we are willing to go along with the plan, we will be fighting against what it is He has planned for us. Sound so simple doesn’t it – but for us it is hard to let go of the worldly things which surround us and to place our full hope and trust in God! This is the task Jeremiah had in front of him – to try and persuade the people what they had been doing wrong and to turn away from their own imaginings and trust God.

Points to Ponder:
How often do you ignore good advice?

Will you try to listen carefully to God’s advice?