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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.” Jeremiah 29:11

Israel and Judah have fallen and Jerusalem is in ruins.  The Jewish/Judean people are taken into captivity by Babylon. All because idolatry and pagan gods were too attractive. They worshiped the One True God with rituals that meant nothing in substance and gave their hearts to worldly pleasures that robbed them of their freedom.  God put a limit on their punishment, 70 years. In the mean time, there was hope, lots of it, and they had work to do.

This verse is from a letter Jeremiah sent to the elders, exiles, priests and prophets that were taken from Jerusalem. The opening words show that God, not Babylon is in charge (v. 4). Babylon does not escape without its punishment in the years to come. These people, torn from the comforts of their home, are told to rest in hope, build a new life and seek peace and prosperity. Most of all, guard against false prophets hoping to gain from man’s general discontent. Trust the LORD, He is good.

I know this passage is a very popular phrase of encouragement and hope, captioning beautiful pictures on greeting cards, but it must remain in context and content. To seek and find God’s Holiness is peace. Prosperity is NOT earthly comfort, but an exhilaration of the soul that knows it will always have enough because God will provide.

God won’t share space in your heart. Your only hope is His plan, full of goodness and peace.

Love,

Gretchen

“O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter does?” declares the LORD. “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel.” Jeremiah 18:6

There is very little left of God’s covenant nation Israel.  The homelands, Judah and Israel have been obliterated and Jerusalem is falling into the hands of Babylon, a consequence of disobedience. (Later Babylon was wiped off the face of the earth as punishment for its sins against the Jews.)

Jeremiah is called to the house of a potter where God gave him a message.  He finds a potter struggling with clay that is marred and will not become what it was intended to be. Without discarding the clay, the potter successfully reshapes the vessel. Wickedness and idolatry are the people’s choice, but God can change their destiny if they will allow Him the right to shape and direct their future.

Our choices determine our destiny. Free will is a gift from God. Our ultimate gift, and faith in action, is the return of our will to God.

Complete submission versus personal autonomy seems like an incredibly difficult choice until you consider the outcome.  It brings the concept of, “Make good choices” to a whole new level!

Have a great weekend!

Gretchen

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the Father. Matthew 10:29

Jesus called twelve disciples, all Jewish men, yet diverse in many ways. They knew a Messiah was coming and they believed Jesus was probably Him, but they expected a governmental coup and an earthly reign and justice. So, Jesus begins training these men who have stepped out in ‘faith’ believing they knew what they signed up for. It will be their mission to carry His message, while He is on earth, but more importantly, when He leaves.

A map of what to expect is laid out.  There will be much injustice including in the synagogue. Be discerning and watchful, but also be gentle and compassionate. Fear the one that destroys the soul, not those who can kill the body. In this training session, discipleship 101, the greatest lesson is God’s loving provision and care. Even the sparrow is sheltered and fed.

Man grants quality to everything and extends emotions accordingly.  God does NOT! The sparrow’s value in the order of things on earth is irrelevant to the standard of God’s loving care. On this earth there will be trials and sorrows. They are not proportionate to, nor do they reflect our value to God.  Our value is a given. He gave His son so that we may have life everlasting. God sees our tears and hears our cries. He has already prepared a way to overcome. Rest and know peace in His love and care.

Love,

Gretchen

Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits, who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases. Psalm 103:2-3

King David is growing old and spends time reflecting rather than planning. He sees a life covered in grace and mercy far beyond his (or any man’s) worth. In place of listing his personal achievements, David sees a God that has led, comforted, protected, sustained, forgiven, the list is as endless as the grace and mercy extended. Read all of Psalm 103, it is one of the most comforting and assuring passages to be found.

dictionary.com defines ‘soul’ as the principle of life, feeling, thought, and action.

The all encompassing, defining character of man is the soul. Everything that IS David, praises the LORD.

The most powerful man on earth, during his lifetime, found the same God that loves you and I. David’s greatest peace grows out of the assurance that God is stable, never changing. What He does for one, He does for all. David recounted God’s infallible justice and found love. All that David received and remembers across His lifetime is available to you and I also.

Love,

Gretchen

He tends His flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart; He gently leads those that have young. Isaiah 40:11

The things of God are a sure thing. This passage is a revelation to Isaiah revealing the universal loving kindness of God. Jerusalem is all that survives of Israel because God’s people persist through the ages to disregard God’s love and law. Still, He shows His goodness and character of grace.

An animal is most vulnerable when caring for its young. There is a great deal at stake when the wellbeing of offspring’s sustenance and survival is weighed. So what does Isaiah hear from Heaven? The eternal comfort that in man’s most compromised and challenging moments, God pours out His greatest love and compassion.

In the deepest pit, in the farthest galaxy, in the darkest corner of your heart and mind, God is there. He leads, gathers and carries His precious creation. Where? CLOSE TO HIS….HIS! HEART!

Love,

Gretchen

Who will not fear you, O LORD, and bring glory to your name? Revelation 15:4

John saw Heaven and lived to tell about it. By means of the human language, he revealed the vision to us in his text, Revelation. These words are part of a song of victory sung by the redeemed gone before us. There is an uncontainable joy upon entering into the unclouded, unfiltered presence of He who manages the world.

Following this song of praise John sees seven angels bearing the judgment of the world. The praise is not contingent on the judgement, for vengeance or justice is not the source of Heaven’s exultation. However, John sees everyone that has ever drawn breath stand before the LORD.

Those who believe are secure from the terrors of final judgement. The unbelief of some has absolutely no bearing on reality. Those who have chosen evil will experience the evil of final and eternal death and the absence of God’s presence for all eternity.

There is a forever…..you cannot change it……you can only choose your destination.

Love,

Gretchen

In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:6

As an avid church sign reader I pick up some fun things. Not that this is deep theology, but just something to think about. Here is a gem I read many years ago:

The path of least resistance makes men and rivers crooked.

Don’t go babbling along through life picking up eroded debris as you pass by and wondering aimlessly through muck and mire you never meant to encounter.

God does not place distractions in our life to harm us and take us off course. The world does. Keep your eyes on Him and your journey will be a lighted, clear and straight path.

Happy Monday!

Gretchen

“Stand up and praise the LORD your God, who is from everlasting to everlasting.” Nehemiah 9:5b

Nehemiah was a civil governor, sent with authority from the Persian King to rebuild the Jerusalem wall, thus returning the City of David to the fortified city of refuge it had once been.

Solomon’s temple had been restored, but otherwise, Jerusalem offered no place of hope or future. Threats from neighbors, real and imagined, hindered the Jews from rebuilding their home. Then Nehemiah came with power and resources from the Persian King and in 52 days had the job completed. How? He prayed and petitioned God in all things. When the wall was finished he and Ezra, the priest, led the people in once again becoming the covenant people of the One True God, the Jewish Nation. They organized worship, read daily from the Book of Law and gave simple applications for Holy living. Revival occurred, the people repented and turned to God.

The above verse is the first line of the national confession. It continues through the chapter restating that God remained loving and faithful through the rebellion of His covenant people.

God is faithful, from everlasting to everlasting. When Nehemiah returned to Jerusalem to rebuild a wall, his real mission was to bring a dispersed and barely recognizable nation together and restore its identity in God alone. It wasn’t the wall that transformed these people of old, it was their return to worship and obedience within the wall that changed the course of their history.

A solid wall won’t give you hope and a future, but faithful obedience will guarantee it!

Love,

Gretchen

So they pulled their boats up on the shore, left everything and followed Him. Luke 5:11

“They” are Simon Peter, and his business partners, brothers James and John, the sons of Zebedee.

Luke 5, verses 1-11 tell of Jesus’ encounter along the Sea of Gennesaret (Galilee) with common fishermen who have seen the sun rise on an unsuccessful catch. In this story, Jesus gets personal. He advises Peter in Peter’s own area of expertise, and succeeds against normal circumstances, bringing Peter to his knees in humble confession.

Jesus has begun His ministry of miraculous hope and healing. People gather wherever He goes. On this morning He is beachside teaching about His Heavenly Father. While fishermen wash their nets, Jesus borrows Peter’s boat as a better platform. Following His lesson, Jesus tells Peter to let down his nets once again. It is not the time of day for prime fishing and these professionals have already seen a night of failure, but Peter obeys and brings in the best catch he’s ever seen. Rather than bask in the possible turn of fortune, Peter LEAVES EVERYTHING and follows Jesus.

Pursuing man in man’s everyday life, Jesus does not seek the perfect, but brings Holiness to the obedient. I wish I could tell you that the cost of following Jesus is so minimal that you hardly notice any difference in your life, but that is not so. On our journey to everlasting……we must carry nothing. For arms outstretched to a Savior must not be hindered by the burdens of this world.

Happy Week’s End,

Gretchen

Worship the LORD in the splendor of His Holiness, tremble before Him, all the earth. Psalm 96:9

While Christians may debate the mechanisms of creation, there is no question of the relationship between the Creator and the created. The universe inspires us to worship, to marvel, at the extravagant care and beauty of God’s power and love made evident in His gift of life and all that sustains it.

God can do anything He choses. He chose to love and provide a way for us to find our way, safely and securely, to His Throne, where we can live in eternal peace, on earth as it is in Heaven.

This is a beautiful psalm to the Sovereignty of God. Read it in its entirety. Sing, sing and sing some more in joyful thanksgiving.

Have a lovely day,

Gretchen