Jeremiah 42 GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
13 “But suppose you say, ‘We won’t stay in this land,’ and you disobey the Lord your God. 14 Then you say, ‘We’ll go to Egypt, where we won’t have to see war, hear the sound of a ram’s horn, or be hungry. We’ll stay there.’
15 “Now, listen to the Lord’s word, you people who are left in Judah. This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: Suppose you’re determined to go to Egypt, and you go and live there. 16 Then the wars you fear will catch up with you in Egypt. The famines you dread will follow you to Egypt, and you will die there. 17 So all the people who decide to go and live in Egypt will die in wars, famines, and plagues. No one will survive or escape the disasters I will bring on them.
18 “This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: As my anger and my fury were poured out on those who live in Jerusalem, so my fury will be poured out on you if you go to Egypt. You will become a curse word. You will become something ridiculed, cursed, and disgraced. You won’t see this place again.
19 “The Lord has told you people who are left in Judah not to go to Egypt. You need to know that I am warning you today. 20 You only deceived yourselves when you sent me to the Lord your God and said, ‘Pray to the Lord our God for us, and tell us everything that the Lord our God says, and we’ll do it.’... 22 But now, you need to know that you will die in wars, famines, or plagues in the place where you want to go and live.”
The people left in Judah had just experienced more traumatizing destruction of all they held dear at the hands of a brutal Ishmael and ten of his men. Their livelihood was directly attacked, their safety viciously threatened. The request they made to the prophet Jeremiah immediately following their rescue from all of this craziness struck me:
"We will obey the LORD our God...whether it's good or bad...so that everything will go well for us".
Since our adventures with you, I've been suffering a crisis of faith. I've been faced head-on with the impossible question, "Will I continue to serve the Lord, even if it means everything doesn't go well for me here on Earth?" Somewhere along my faith-walk, I (like the people in Judah) deceived myself. I arrogantly formed the belief that I could pray, ask God to guide me, obey no matter what (ha), and that all of this would predictably deliver an almost immediate "wellness" for me. Because of my confidence in this formula, I've shamefully been heralded for my trust without borders...for my childlike faith...for my "direct line" to Jesus and my "pillar of smoke in the kitchen". Left here in the ruins of our once beautiful story, however, I'm faced with a much uglier truth about myself now stripped of the pretty lies my deceitful heart had it packaged in.
My faith has been misplaced.
It hasn't been in God for His will's sake, but rather in the hope that my own selfish desire for wellness would be met by obeying Him. I haven't been serving Him for His will to be done, but for mine. I haven't been seeking His glory, but my own.
I (again, like the people in Judah) have wanted to run back to a place and time that's not here--to my own "Egypt". I've been wanting to move out of this small town so we no longer have to risk seeing you, or hear anymore rumors that are spreading, or hunger for reconciliation that seems more and more unlikely to be satiated every day that passes. Yet, no end to this madness has been in sight. I've felt stuck. I've been squirming under the pressure, distressed and depressed in the discomfort of it all. And I've been wrestling with God, angry at Him for not relieving me but also frustrated with myself, with my weak will...with my fair-weather faith. I've been standing at a crossroads spiritually. Never before have the choices "wide gate" or "narrow" been so delineated. And never before has the path of least resistance been more tempting.
Obedience doesn't promise immediate reward. There's no guarantee that my life will run smoothly in this world. But there is a guarantee that I'm bulking up for the next! Am I going to crumble under the weight of these trials or rise to the occasion and strengthen my faith? Am I going to quit because it's hard, or press through the pain of now so I can experience real strength of character later?
Am I going to go "back to Egypt" or obey and "stay in this land"?
I can finally not just see, but believe now that God has not allowed all of this heartache to tear me down, but rather to build me up. He's allowed these trials and this pain to work out the deepest parts of me so I can experience the joy of answered prayer long prayed for--to please Him, to be more like Him, to have the faith I crave that moves mountains. Moving, running to "Egypt" (while providing immediate relief), would ultimately be my ruin. The Lord is not uprooting us because He knows that we'll bloom by planting us in this soil...ripe for the growth that we all need right now!
Tilling the heart is a painful process, indeed. But praise Jesus we're not being destroyed...we're being rescued!!
Which path are you going to choose?
Praying for you, Sweet Loo--that the fullness of your disappointment in every person that has failed to give you what you so desperately long for will drive you to turn in humble, broken dependence to God. May He once and for all fill those empty places inside of us both.
Love you.
*Quotes from the book Inside Out by Dr. Larry Crabb
Jeremiah Warns the People of Judah Not to Go to Egypt
42 Then all the army commanders along with Kareah’s son Johanan and Hoshaiah’s son Jezaniah and all the people, from the least important to the most important, came to the prophet Jeremiah. 2 They said to him, “Please listen to our request, and pray to the Lord your God for all of us who are left here. As you can see, there are only a few of us left. 3 Let the Lord your God tell us where we should go and what we should do.” ...6 We will obey the Lord our God to whom we are sending you, whether it’s good or bad. Yes, we will obey the Lord our God so that everything will go well for us.”...
9 Jeremiah said to them, “You sent me to plead your case humbly to the Lord. This is what the Lord God of Israel says: 10 Suppose you stay in this land. Then I will build you up and not tear you down. I will plant you and not uproot you. I will change my plans about the disaster I’ve brought on you. 11 Don’t be afraid of the king of Babylon, whom you now fear. Don’t be afraid of him, declares the Lord. I’m with you. I will save you and rescue you from his power. 12 I will have compassion on you. I will make him have compassion on you and return you to your land.13 “But suppose you say, ‘We won’t stay in this land,’ and you disobey the Lord your God. 14 Then you say, ‘We’ll go to Egypt, where we won’t have to see war, hear the sound of a ram’s horn, or be hungry. We’ll stay there.’
15 “Now, listen to the Lord’s word, you people who are left in Judah. This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: Suppose you’re determined to go to Egypt, and you go and live there. 16 Then the wars you fear will catch up with you in Egypt. The famines you dread will follow you to Egypt, and you will die there. 17 So all the people who decide to go and live in Egypt will die in wars, famines, and plagues. No one will survive or escape the disasters I will bring on them.
18 “This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: As my anger and my fury were poured out on those who live in Jerusalem, so my fury will be poured out on you if you go to Egypt. You will become a curse word. You will become something ridiculed, cursed, and disgraced. You won’t see this place again.
19 “The Lord has told you people who are left in Judah not to go to Egypt. You need to know that I am warning you today. 20 You only deceived yourselves when you sent me to the Lord your God and said, ‘Pray to the Lord our God for us, and tell us everything that the Lord our God says, and we’ll do it.’... 22 But now, you need to know that you will die in wars, famines, or plagues in the place where you want to go and live.”
The people left in Judah had just experienced more traumatizing destruction of all they held dear at the hands of a brutal Ishmael and ten of his men. Their livelihood was directly attacked, their safety viciously threatened. The request they made to the prophet Jeremiah immediately following their rescue from all of this craziness struck me:
"We will obey the LORD our God...whether it's good or bad...so that everything will go well for us".
Since our adventures with you, I've been suffering a crisis of faith. I've been faced head-on with the impossible question, "Will I continue to serve the Lord, even if it means everything doesn't go well for me here on Earth?" Somewhere along my faith-walk, I (like the people in Judah) deceived myself. I arrogantly formed the belief that I could pray, ask God to guide me, obey no matter what (ha), and that all of this would predictably deliver an almost immediate "wellness" for me. Because of my confidence in this formula, I've shamefully been heralded for my trust without borders...for my childlike faith...for my "direct line" to Jesus and my "pillar of smoke in the kitchen". Left here in the ruins of our once beautiful story, however, I'm faced with a much uglier truth about myself now stripped of the pretty lies my deceitful heart had it packaged in.
"When we face how deeply disappointed we are with our relationships, it then becomes possible to recognize the ugliness of what before seemed reasonable" (Crabb, 188).
It hasn't been in God for His will's sake, but rather in the hope that my own selfish desire for wellness would be met by obeying Him. I haven't been serving Him for His will to be done, but for mine. I haven't been seeking His glory, but my own.
I (again, like the people in Judah) have wanted to run back to a place and time that's not here--to my own "Egypt". I've been wanting to move out of this small town so we no longer have to risk seeing you, or hear anymore rumors that are spreading, or hunger for reconciliation that seems more and more unlikely to be satiated every day that passes. Yet, no end to this madness has been in sight. I've felt stuck. I've been squirming under the pressure, distressed and depressed in the discomfort of it all. And I've been wrestling with God, angry at Him for not relieving me but also frustrated with myself, with my weak will...with my fair-weather faith. I've been standing at a crossroads spiritually. Never before have the choices "wide gate" or "narrow" been so delineated. And never before has the path of least resistance been more tempting.
"When the fullness of our disappointment drives us to an overwhelming sorrow hat replaces anger with pain.... That kind of pain...is the starting point for real change. It is only when we face the horror of desperately longing for what no one has or ever will provide that we give up our demands of others to satisfy our thirst and we turn in humble, broken dependence to God" (Crabb, 188).
Am I going to go "back to Egypt" or obey and "stay in this land"?
I can finally not just see, but believe now that God has not allowed all of this heartache to tear me down, but rather to build me up. He's allowed these trials and this pain to work out the deepest parts of me so I can experience the joy of answered prayer long prayed for--to please Him, to be more like Him, to have the faith I crave that moves mountains. Moving, running to "Egypt" (while providing immediate relief), would ultimately be my ruin. The Lord is not uprooting us because He knows that we'll bloom by planting us in this soil...ripe for the growth that we all need right now!
Tilling the heart is a painful process, indeed. But praise Jesus we're not being destroyed...we're being rescued!!
Which path are you going to choose?
Praying for you, Sweet Loo--that the fullness of your disappointment in every person that has failed to give you what you so desperately long for will drive you to turn in humble, broken dependence to God. May He once and for all fill those empty places inside of us both.
Love you.
*Quotes from the book Inside Out by Dr. Larry Crabb
