“But the word of the Lord endures forever.” Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.- 1 Peter 1:25
This motivational thought is based on God’s words to the prophet Jeremiah concerning the return of the Jews to Jerusalem after 70 years of Babylonian captivity. Jeremiah said, “This is what the Lord says, ‘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.’” Within its historical context, this prophecy was fulfilled when the Jews returned to Jerusalem in 538 B.C. However, since these words are recorded in the Bible, they remain active for anyone reading them today. That’s how scripture works. God’s word endures and by, his grace, you can hold it in your hands today.
I received a comment on a Facebook post this week where I quoted this Bible verse. The comment implied that this verse can be seen as resigning to the fact that, if God plans our lives, then we have no say in our future. Well, for me, I would gladly resign to God’s plans for my future. I know, by experience, that my plans seldom work out for the good.
However, God is gracious. By that I mean, he never forces his will on us. We are always free to choose to go with his plans or reject his design for our lives. Therefore, I am free to plod along through life without acknowledging God and simply hope for the best, or I could surrender my will to his will in the knowledge that all things will work out for my good since I have been called according to his purpose. The surety of this fact lies in the reality that God knows my tomorrow; he is there already.
My encouragement to you today is, resign your life over to the plans that God knows he has for you. Acknowledge him in all your ways and trust that he will plan your life’s track. His plans are always for your shalom (peace, harmony, wholeness, completeness, prosperity, welfare and tranquility), even when the contrary seems evident. This promise, spoken more than two and a half thousand years ago, is still alive and real for you today.