Don't bother even trying.
At least in America,
there is an attitude that if you want it and are willing to work hard you can
get it. The amazing thing is that in many areas it is true. Getting wealth,
notoriety, and position can come easier here than in any place in the world. So
saying that you shouldn't even try seems completely wrong.
The truth is that in some
places and definitely during the time of Jeremiah trying to get "great
things" (45:5) is an exercise in futility. God was not being cruel to
Baruch (Jeremiah's scribe). God was trying to save him from the pain of even
more loss.
In Ecclesiastes chapter
3, it says there is a time to give up. This was that time. Trying to fight
against it wasn't going to help. Yes, we shouldn't give up just because things
are hard, but there is a time to walk away. There is a time to run away. Don't
give up too early, but when God says to let go, it will save you a lot of
disappointment.
Jer 45:1-5
(1) The word that Jeremiah the prophet spake unto Baruch the son of Neriah, when he had written these words in a book at the mouth of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, saying,
(2) Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, unto thee, O Baruch;
(3) Thou didst say, Woe is me now! for the LORD hath added grief to my sorrow; I fainted in my sighing, and I find no rest.
(4) Thus shalt thou say unto him, The LORD saith thus; Behold, that which I have built will I break down, and that which I have planted I will pluck up, even this whole land.
(5) And seekest thou great things for thyself? seek them not: for, behold, I will bring evil upon all flesh, saith the LORD: but thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in all places whither thou goest.
No comments:
Post a Comment