EXPAND TO READ: JEREMIAH 41 (HCSB)
EXPAND TO READ: JEREMIAH 42 (HCSB)
PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN (verse 42:21): Father, please forgive me for not obeying ALL You have instructed me to do. Forgive me for picking and choosing what I want to follow from You in the moment and what I decide to put off until later or possibly never follow through with. Forgive me for this disobedience, Father. I know I’m not perfect, but I also know that if I were to truly follow You with all that I am then Your will is the best thing for me. Through You I will gain perfection not in this life, but the next. Remind me in those times that I struggle to get back in step with Your instructions for my life, Father. Help me to correct the shortcomings I currently have in my faith walk with You, so that those shortcomings and mistakes become less and less in the future.
PROMISE (verses 42:10, 42:12): In these two verses, You make a promise to Your people that if they obey Your instructions for them, that You will have compassion towards them and relent concerning the disaster You brought upon them for their disobedience and sinful way of living. Thank You for Your compassion, Father. Thank You for always showing us that not only is Your way better for us, but Your way also grants great rewards such as Your compassion towards us in our moments of obedience.
ATTITUDE (verse 42:6): Whether or not they followed through with this attitude, the statement they made is such a powerful one that I hope and pray I can one day truly live by in all things. They say that no matter what the Lord says to them, be it pleasant or unpleasant in the moment, they will obey. Help me to live with an obedient attitude like this, Father. Help me to live my life with an attitude that is not only seeking Your great counsel and instruction, but also an attitude of willingness to follow and obey such counsel and instruction.
COMMAND (verse 42:11): Although this command is in reference to the king of Babylon specifically, I feel it’s also a command that can apply to all things in this life. You quite simply tell us to not be afraid of those whom we now fear. I feel this is a great command when generalized, because we often have a fear of people in this life, be it a light fear of not wanting to talk openly to them or a major “fear for your life” type of fear. If we are to follow You, then we should not have a fear of anyone except You in this life, Father. Help me to no longer live a life in fear of truly speaking about who my Lord and Savior is, Father. Help me to be better at living this life with a righteous fear of You and nothing/no one else.
EXAMPLE (verse 4): Jeremiah was not one to hold any punches or put a “political correctness” spin on what You asked him to say to Your people, Father. In this Scripture, Your people asked him to pray to You about what they should do and they assured him that they would listen this time. Before even beginning to go to You, he essentially told them that he would not hold back any single word You gave him to say no matter what, so they better be ready to receive. Help me to live my life in a way that glorifies You like Jeremiah did by not having any fear of sharing Your truth in its entirety to others.
*DAILY NOTE: I ended up reading through two chapters today because Jeremiah 41 seemed to really be a quick sequence of events that were given to bring me into Jeremiah 42. I felt that Jeremiah 41 by itself was not what was intended for me today, so I pressed on and I’m so glad that I did. Jeremiah 42 is a powerful set of Scripture. How often do we give ANYONE, even our closest friends and family, the very blunt and totally honest truth on any topic? What Jeremiah did in his obedience here is amazing because he essentially was asked to tell them to either obey God or they would certainly suffer just as much, if not more, than they already have in their disobedience. He was extremely truthful, honest, and blunt with them; he removed all types of speaking filters that we often use today when speaking to others. WOW!
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
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