Have you ever had the experience of traveling somewhere and having someone greet you on the other end? Traveling by air you often have someone pick you up from the airport. One of my most memorable moments of travel was to Grandma’s house. You would pull up in the driveway and she would come running out the door with shouts of joy, hugs and kisses, and sometimes snacks and treats she’d made just for us.
Guess what? 2025, it is here and God has been here waiting for us to arrive!
God is never caught off-guard of where we are or in what condition we find ourselves. Jeremiah 29:11 states, “For I know the plans and thoughts that I have for you,” says the LORD, “plans for peace and well-being and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”
The context of the story surrounding Jeremiah and this message can apply to us as we may see our current situation(s) impossible and hopeless. The time period is after the Israelites had been captured and taken into Babylonian captivity under the rule of Nebuchadnezzar. The Israelites were in captivity for 70 years when Jeremiah’s message came to them. Jeremiah was part of those remaining in Jerusalem and he was sending a message to those in captivity. The ruling class of Jerusalem was unhappy with Jeremiah, and sending this message placed Jeremiah in grave danger.
Jeremiah was sending a message of hope to the captives. Jeremiah earlier in the same chapter stated (vs 5-7):
“Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their fruit. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters, multiply there and not decrease [in number]. Seek peace and well-being for the city where I have sent you into exile, and say to the LORD on its behalf, for in its peace (well-being) you will have peace.”
God is standing in our present with open arms declaring to us, “I’ve been waiting for you to arrive.” God has love to lavish on us because we are His children. He has gifts to offer us through that love. Just as Jeremiah told the people in exile, God has “plans for peace and well-being and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope,” God today is aware of our current condition and circumstances. Our grandmothers in the driveway knew our condition and loved us just the way we were. They were still overjoyed to have us come into their presence. The question is, “Will we stay in the car?”
What does it look like to get out of “the car” and into the presence of God? The first step is admitting we have an estranged relationship with God. While many of us may have gone to church as kids, we have not walked in a close loving relationship with God our Father and Creator. Secondly, we need to ask God for forgiveness, and ask Him to come into our lives as the savior and director of our lives.
Finally, as we get out of “the car” we need to run into the arms of Jesus and begin to read our Bibles and fellowship with other believers so we can get to know the true LOVE NATURE of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
If you have additional questions of what this really means or how to begin this relationship with God, give us a call at (937) 424-1640. We’d love to talk to you about it!
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