BACKGROUND
The time frame for this chapter is sometime between April 23 and October 17, 587 B.C. During this time, Babylon was besieging Jerusalem (January 15, 588 till July 18, 586) and Jeremiah was imprisoned in the palace. It was not a wise time to buy a field already occupied by enemy forces, but Jeremiah was following the Mosaic Law which stated that a person must purchase the property of a relative who was forced to sell so that it could stay in the family (Leviticus 25:25-28; Ruth 4:1-6). God told Jeremiah that his cousin would come so that Jeremiah would see God's hand in Hanamel's request to buy the field. God's purpose in Jeremiah's purchase of the field was to show that the people would indeed return to the land.
Following the purchase, Jeremiah gave praise and prayed to God, but he also expressed his doubt about buying the field when the city was about to be taken (Jeremiah 32:24-25). I love Jeremiah's honesty! God's response assured Jeremiah that while judgment was falling, restoration would eventually come, and He would make an "everlasting covenant" with them. This is the New Covenant we talked about yesterday.
REFLECTION/APPLICATION (written in 2009)
Take some time to praise God through Jeremiah's prayer in 32:17-22! Something happened to us yesterday that does not make sense from a human perspective, but we have seen God's hand at work before and know that He loves us and that there is a larger purpose in the situation. In fact, we already see a glimpse of it in the distance. Perhaps some things do not make sense to you either. Let this prayer give you God's perspective!
2012 Update: I wrote this in 2009, and at first, I could not even remember what the "thing that happened to us" could have been, but now I remember! George did not get the promotion that he was asked to apply for and was assured he would get until a woman applied, and because of Affirmative Action, they had to hire her because they were under quota for women scientists. It was a sad day, but just a few days later, we were given the opportunity to do a ministry that we had always dreamed of. If George had gotten the promotion, he would have been traveling quite a bit, and we would not have been able to do this great ministry that we are still involved in today! A few months later, he was offered a job that put him in the center of campus where he could meet more easily with people in our ministry! God's way is always the best!
Now, we face another "seeming setback" in that George's job in the heart of campus is being cut by 20%. We see that this will be an opportunity for him to have more time for ministry, but we also know that he already had a 40% pay cut from his job that he was laid off from in 2008. We trust God again and will buy more land in faith! LOL!
2014 Update: We are still living here and doing that same great ministry! George did have to switch jobs, but it has worked out great even though he has to live 90 north during the week.
2012 Update: I wrote this in 2009, and at first, I could not even remember what the "thing that happened to us" could have been, but now I remember! George did not get the promotion that he was asked to apply for and was assured he would get until a woman applied, and because of Affirmative Action, they had to hire her because they were under quota for women scientists. It was a sad day, but just a few days later, we were given the opportunity to do a ministry that we had always dreamed of. If George had gotten the promotion, he would have been traveling quite a bit, and we would not have been able to do this great ministry that we are still involved in today! A few months later, he was offered a job that put him in the center of campus where he could meet more easily with people in our ministry! God's way is always the best!
Now, we face another "seeming setback" in that George's job in the heart of campus is being cut by 20%. We see that this will be an opportunity for him to have more time for ministry, but we also know that he already had a 40% pay cut from his job that he was laid off from in 2008. We trust God again and will buy more land in faith! LOL!
2014 Update: We are still living here and doing that same great ministry! George did have to switch jobs, but it has worked out great even though he has to live 90 north during the week.
2023 Update: God is so sovereign, because George was 90 north, he was able to help his mother while they both nursed his ailing aunt into heaven. Then, he came back home during COVID. Then in the twist of all twists, the employer who laid him off in 2008 hired him back and he works with Southeast Asians and from the country in which we lived from 1997-99!
PRAYER
Lord, sometimes things happen to us that do not make sense at the time, but You are faithful, and You have loved us with an everlasting love. You are faithful to Your promises. Therefore, we can trust You and obey Your leading. We know You will make it all clear in the future. Thank You. Amen.
1 comment:
So fun to relive the twist and turns of my husband's job situation and see God's hand through it all!
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