21 Days of Prayer - Persevereনমুনা

When You’ve Lost Hope

The Israelites had once again broken God’s covenant. The people had turned away from God and began worshiping the gods of the Canaanites. Some had even started the evil practice of sacrificing their children to the gods. The leaders of the people failed to lead well, resulting in social injustice. They were not caring for the orphans, widows, and immigrants as the law had required.

God sent the prophet Jeremiah with a message to give to His people. This message was that Israel would be conquered by an army from the north and that they would live in exile for seventy years. This prophecy was fulfilled when the Babylonians, led by King Nebuchadnezzar, attacked and defeated Israel. Many of the Israelites were taken to Babylon and exiled from Jerusalem.

Think about what it would be like hearing these words and then seeing the mighty army of Babylon approach your city. Imagine the overwhelming fear that would grip your soul, knowing that you and your children would be forced to live in the captivity of this brutal enemy. You would begin to face the reality that you had failed to serve and worship the one true and living God. Perhaps you would consider the possibility that God was giving up on you. After all, it was you who put other things above God. It was you who chose to worship and live as the Canaanites. It was you who broke the covenant, not God.

However, God had not turned His back on the Israelites. God promised that at the end of the seventy years, Babylon would also face justice. They would be defeated, and Israel would be restored. God had a plan, and it was a good plan. God told Jeremiah to tell His people: “‘When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. 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. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,’ declares the Lord, ‘and will bring you back from captivity’” (Jeremiah 29:10-14).

God promised them hope. He promised them a future. Despite Israel’s weaknesses, failures, and disobedience, God stayed true to His plan and purpose for Israel. Their hope for freedom and restoration was in Him. Through Jeremiah, God instructed his people to persevere and thrive in exile. He told them to build homes, plant gardens, eat, marry, and have children so that they increase in numbers. He also told them to pray for the city in which they live. God also gave them a warning. While in exile, they were told to avoid false prophets and others who would deceive them and draw them away from God.

God has plans for us as well. Plans to prosper us and not to cause us harm. These plans will give us hope and a future. We are God’s people living as exiles in a culture that is not godly. Children are neglected and abused. Homelessness is an epidemic across our country. Crime is rampant. People worship the gods of sports and entertainment. Cell phones capture arguments on airplanes and fights on the streets. Children and adults are equally addicted to the handheld devices that offer access to all things unholy while stripping us of valuable time and attention to the ones we love.

How do we, as Christians, survive in this kind of world?

Jesus knew that life would be difficult for His followers. John recorded Jesus’s prayer for His disciples. He prayed, “I have given them your word, and the world hated them because they are not of the world. I do not ask you to take them out of the world but to keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world” (John 17:14-16). He did not pray that things would be easy for them but that they would be protected from evil as they carry on in this life.

In His prayer for His disciples, Jesus explained that He sent them into the world so that they would find truth, be sanctified, unite, and show the world who Jesus is. We are exiles in this dark and sinful world. If we focus on our circumstances or our surroundings, we could easily fall into despair and lose hope. But God has a purpose for our exile. That purpose is to draw others into the Kingdom of God.

Just like the Israelites who were exiled to Babylon, we should build homes, eat, marry, have children, and enjoy our lives. When we get desperate or discouraged, we are to call on God. He wants us to come to Him and pray to Him. He promises to listen to us. When we seek Him with all our hearts, we will find Him. When our time here is finished, and we have fulfilled our purpose, He will release us from the troubles of this world.

Until then, remember that God’s promises are as true today as when Jeremiah delivered them to the Israelites. He is always faithful and just. Our hope and our future are found in Him.

Julie Austin

Prayer Point: Where do you feel hopeless? Pray about this situation today and ask God to work a miracle.