“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 hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11
Everyone filed to the hall after church service for coffee and donuts. My daughter’s friend wandered over and greeted me with a slight frown.
I learned he prays daily, helps those in need, and tithes every Sunday. But he could not see how his efforts led to anything good in his life. He struggled to find steady employment and was weighed with financial worries. We talked about God’s desire to provide good things for him and how God’s plan does not always align with what we want.
As my daughter’s friend grabbed a donut and prepared to head home, I left him with one last thought: “Often, those who seem to have everything going for them were once the depressed and discouraged, the unemployed and financially broke, and the lonely and homeless.”
Not everything will be easy for a believer. Hardships will come. There cannot be the joy of glory without times of suffering.
Yes, we can expect to face suffering in our faith journey. As followers of Christ, there is comfort in the words of Jeremiah to the Babylonian exiles. And it is not in the promise to immediately rescue us from suffering but rather the recognition that he has a plan for our lives regardless of our current situation. God can work through it to benefit us, giving us hope and a future.
He promises the pain and hardships will serve their purpose and contribute to an overall good in his plan for our lives. God wants his faithful people to stay hopeful. For those who wait on the Lord, never forget that the goodness and beauty we seek is just beyond the circumstances we find ourselves in.
Remember, he has great things in store for each of us and wants his followers to stick by him, trusting God.
Our Lord is full of love and hope. So stay close even when he leads you down a hard road.
Lord, please help us see things differently, giving us hope even when circumstances are difficult or confusing at the moment, in our lives. Amen.
By Doug Lim
Used by Permission
Further Reading
• A Bible Study on Waiting on God