A future and a hope (now more than ever).

Reading Jeremiah, I have reached chapter 29, home of one of the most-quoted verses of all time, Jeremiah 29:11 ("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 a hope and a future." [NIV]). I've long looked at that verse as affirmation that my Father promises to fulfill good and exciting plans for me. In this season of life, when everything seems to be falling through and I am driven farther and farther away from where I dream of being, I can easily wonder how that verse is relevant. Reading it in the context of the rest of the chapter surrounding it, I see that it is actually incredibly relevant - more relevant and applicable to me now, actually, than before: He promises this hope, this future, to his people who, in his wisdom and sovereignty, has driven into exile. This promise is FOR people who might wonder, as I've wondered, where their God is! I've wondered in these difficult times if Jeremiah 29:11 actually spoke to me in the position I'm in, and now, my thinking is reversed: was he ever speaking that to me more than he is now?

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile."