For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Jeremiah 29:11

Recommended Reading

Jeremiah 29:1-11

Poor Donald Pugh. He was very upset over the unflattering photograph of him released by the Lima, Ohio, police. He appeared overweight and puffy. Pugh was so unhappy he sent them a much better picture of himself—which led to his arrest. It reminds us of the line by poet Robert Burns: “The best laid schemes of mice and men often go awry.”

Our schemes often go awry. God’s never do. Look back over the course of your life. If you’re a child of God, you’ll undoubtedly see how God opened doors, closed doors, directed and redirected, ruled and overruled, and led in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.

In Jeremiah 29, the Lord told the exiles in Babylonian refugee camps to trust the Lord, for His plans for them were good and He would give them a future and a hope. The plans we make for ourselves are far exceeded by God’s plan for us. So trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths (see Proverbs 3:5-6).

When we want to know God’s will there are three things which always concur: the inward impulse, the Word of God, and the trend of circumstances.

1. B. Meyer

Read-Thru-the-Bible

Ezekiel 1 – 4

 

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