Jeremiah 29:11-13 – “I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for prosperity and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”
How do you define prosperity? When Israel’s prophet Jeremiah wrote this letter, the people of God were not feeling very prosperous. God was handing them over to judgment via King Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon. The people of Israel had given their allegiance to people and things, rather than to God, and their hearts were far from Him. The result was that God allowed a foreign king and army to come and lead them into exile, uprooting them from everything they knew and were comfortable with.
Jeremiah wants God’s people to know that while they had abandoned Him during their time of prosperity, He was not abandoning them, though the circumstances felt that way. God’s plan was to restore them back into a place of being one in heart and mind with Him. God was giving a means for them to seek, call, and find Him again, where they could have a future, a hope, and true prosperity of heart and mind.
Are circumstances trying right now? God wants you to prosper with Him. He has plans to give you a future and a hope. Seek Him and find Him for no one loves you more than Jesus.
Heavenly Father, thank you for your undying love. Help me to trust that you have a plan for me. Give me a heart that hungers and thirsts for you that I may have a bright future. Amen.