Sitting here writing this devotional in the middle of another UK heatwave, having not left my house since mid-March because of a deadly pandemic sweeping the world, it is hard not to think “really?!” meditating over this verse but He really does.
As we continue through this roller coaster of a year, it is helpful to meditate on this verse.
This is one of the most well-quoted verses in the bible but what is at the heart of this narrative.
Jeremiah whose name means “Jehovah establishes, appointments or sends” delivered this word for a place and a time. Jeremiah imparted this word to Jews who had been living under the domination of the Egyptian and then Babylonian Empires before eventually being carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. Some of us have grandparents and great-grandparents that are old enough to remember a time of domination but I can only sit here and imagine how the generation that Jeremiah was speaking to felt.
These words were spoken in a time of hardship and intense suffering and perhaps like many of us, all this generation wanted to hear was that a swift and speedy response was on its way. However, we know that in many instances this is not God’s way. Here, Jeremiah is reminding God’s people that He has a plan and it will come to completion in their lives.
In order for God’s plan to be executed in our lives, we need to continually be obedient God’s word and request that He continue to order our steps. It is only through this discipline, that we will see this verse come to fruition in its entirety.