August 11

August 11, 2012 

Let's begin today by taking a pop quiz. I am calling this the "Hope" quiz. It will determine your level of hope this Saturday.

1. When facing a difficulty, do you tend to see the positive or the negative?           1 point if negative.

2. Do you worry frequently?                                                                                                  1 point if yes.

3. Is your future going to be better or worse?                                                               1 point if worse.

4. Is it possible to have complete peace in the midst of a life storm?                         1 point if no.

5. Are you able to forgive people who have wounded you?                                                  1 point if no.

6. Are you absolutely passionate about knowing God?                                             1 point if no.

If you have four or more points I think you are hope challenged. Hope is to our spirits what oxygen is to our lungs. Without hope our spirit dies. Our reading today is to a "hope challenged" nation. The southern kingdom of Judah is in the process of being invaded three times. The letter in Jeremiah 29 was written after the second conquest. It is addressed to the exiles living in Babylonia. If we were to summarize this letter in one word it would be "hope." The exiles needed to keep hope alive if they were going to survive this storm.

It is no different for us today. America is experiencing an epidemic of hopelessness. There are four words found in Jeremiah 29 that can restore us.

"Pain" is the first word. Hope is always born out of pain. Pain is the ground in which the tree of hope is planted. This means all of us are candidates for hope because we all have pain. These exiles had lost everything except their lives and what few possessions they could carry. But this exile was not the end of hope; in fact, it was actually the beginning of hope.

Jeremiah 29:4 This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. 

I thought Nebuchadnezzar carried them into exile, yet this verse says God did it. God was present at each step of this exile.  God is taking responsibility for the pain.  Pain is his instrument, his tool, to accomplish his goals.  Remember you are not alone in your pain.

The second word is "Prosper." Jeremiah 29:7 Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.

There is a time for pain to break us but we must move out of the victim stage and bloom where we are planted. Make the best of what God has given you. Some people complain because God put thorns on roses, while others praise Him for putting roses among thorns.  God desires us to praise him for putting roses on thorns.  Life is nothing less than thorns. But hope puts roses on them. Hope sees God's hand moving in the storm and then switches the question from "why" to "what do you want me to learn?" 

The third word is "Promise." Jeremiah 29:11 is a favorite life verse for many. "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

The promise in this verse is that God is in control and he has a plan. God doesn't promise exemption from the storms of life; he promises enablement in those storms. Many people think that God is in control only when life is storm free. This letter was written in the middle of the fierce storm of exile. Our goal is for a life of comfort and ease. God's goal is to make us into fully devoted followers, in the likeness of His Son Jesus. God also promises to prosper us, but His definition of prosperity is very different than ours.

The final word is "Passion."  Hope is a passion. The passion is for seeking God.

Jeremiah 29:13  ^"You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."

That passion places hope in our lives.  God will not reveal himself or his plans to the half-hearted. He only reveals himself to the passionate. When we seek after God with all our hearts then He will be found. The challenge for us is the same challenge Judah struggled with. How can God occupy the very center of our hearts in a world with so many distractions? If you find you're "hope challenged" today you should probably check out your passion level for knowing God. They work hand and hand with each other.  Passionately pursue Him; He is the great hope restorer.