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Jeremiah 36:5-7

Build houses and dwell in them. Plant gardens and eat their fruit. Take wives and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands; and be multiplied and not diminished. Seek the peace of the land into which I carried you captive. Pray to the Lord for them, for in its peace you shall have peace.

Personal Challenge

Just as the Israelites of old, we who follow Jesus, are exiles into a land that is not ours to claim. Paul calls us ambassadors. As a follower of Jesus, our true home is the Kingdom of God and this temporal home is where we have been placed to live out our physical lines until that precious day when we are taken to our true home. We are told by Jeremiah that God wants us to live to our fullest capability in this land that is not ours so that we can be images of Him to those around us. We do this as ambassadors to win over others to Him that they too might choose to be His. Glory be to God!

Galatians 6:14

But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

Personal Challenge

How can we boast in the cross? If was such a vile instrument of cruelty. We boast in our Lord’s victory over the cross and the power that victory brings into our lives. We boast in the fact that we can crucify our sinful self to Jesus’ cross and through that process be cleansed of our sins and set free from the bondage of death. It is the work that Jesus performed through the cross that we boast in. Glory be to God!

Jeremiah 36:11-13

For I shall consider a plan of peace for you, to give you good things and not calamities. Therefore, pray to Me, and I will hear you. Seek Me, and you will find Me, because you seek Me with all your heart.

Encouraging Words

Our God desires us to have peace in our lives, His peace and not the world’s peace. If we will pray to Him, He will hear us. If we seek Him, we will find Him. Glory be to God!

Galatians 6:9

And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.

Personal Challenge

We are called by our Lord to serve Him and our neighbor with a joyful heart. We know that by doing this we are storing up treasures in a world far beyond this one. Many times we are blessed to receive rewards for these actions in this life. Sometimes it is a heartfelt thank you from someone or a gracious smile from the recipient of our service. Many times we receive nothing, especially if our service is anonymous. Paul reminds us to not grow weary of doing this good. We are not doing acts of goodness and kindness to receive rewards but out of our love for our Lord. We do good because of the good that He has done for us. However, it is still possible to grow weary of doing good works and serving our Lord. We can always remember that in the right season of our life we will reap the treasures stored up for us. This is how we do not lose heart. Glory be to God!

Jeremiah 23:23-24

“I am a God who is near,” says the Lord, “and not a God afar off. Can a man hide in secret, and I not see him? Do I not fill heaven and earth?” says the Lord.

Encouraging Words

As we come together in our homes and churches around the world to celebrate the birth of our incarnate Lord and Savior I am reminded by this verse of the uniqueness of the Christian belief. When our God says He is near to us it is not some ethereal promise that He is giving us. His nearness came in the form of a child that was born of a lowly, common family, in a time when the known world was under the oppression of a conceited and arrogant leader. It was a world filled with grief, hunger, wars, and sicknesses. Our God chose to become a human being so that we could become His adopted and deeply loved children. No other religious belief has this as their core teaching. God became man so that man can become His children. As so many of us reflect on the beauty and miracle of this day so many years ago, we are reminded that we too are the shepherds that the angels are hearkening to, hearkening to come and see the infant on the manger wrapped in swaddling clothes. We too are the wise men who are traveling far to find the King Who will set all of mankind and creation free from bondage. And we, like so many that have gone before us can celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ and the entry of new life to our world. Glory be to God!

Jeremiah 17:3-4

But blessed is the man who puts his trust in the Lord, for the Lord shall be his hope. He shall be like a flourishing tree alongside the waters which spreads its roots toward the moisture. He will not fear when the burning heat comes, for He shall be like the root in a grove in the year of drought. He shall not fear, for he shall be like a tree that does not cease yielding its fruit.

Encouraging Words

Putting our trust in the Lord is never in vain. Even though the world tries to pull us away from our God and make fun of us for trusting in Him, He never abandons us. He blesses us for staying true to Him. He is our sure hope. This image of a flourishing tree next to a source of water says it all. This tree will send its roots down deep into the soil so that it can get the water from that creek, river, pond, or lake. When the heat of summer or a drought weighs in heavily on the tree, it will survive because of its deep roots. We can be like these trees by driving our roots deep into our Lord by trusting in Him and receiving His refreshing water. Glory be to God!

Galatians 6:1-5

Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For each one shall bear his own load.

Personal Challenge

We are not alone on our journey of theosis, however, we must still take the time to self examine. Paul informs us that when a brother or sister in our human family falls into sin, it is our responsibility as children of God to be present in their lives in a way that helps to restore them and bring them into a relationship with Christ. We are not to do this by being judgmental and arrogant, but in a spirit of gentleness and bearing their burden with them. This is how we love our neighbor. We must be careful though, that we do not fall into the same temptation, or worse yet, the temptation of pride because of feeling better about ourselves for doing what we are called to do. Just as we are examining others to see where we can come alongside them to offer support, we should be examining ourselves to see where we can be bearing our own loads of life and saying “No!” to temptations and sin. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Jeremiah 15:16

Make an end to them (those who persecute me), and Your word shall be the gladness and joy of my heart; for I am called by Your name, O Lord, the Almighty.

Encouraging Words

Jeremiah, a prophet of God, had been experien­cing much persecution for speaking God’s word to the Israelites. He is pleading with God to be restored. In this verse, he recalls that as a servant of God, he has been given a name and he finds peace and comfort knowing that God will call him by that name and fill him with gladness and joy. How much more can we feel this way, for we are no longer servants of God, but children of God who have been given a new name by our Father? Glory be to God!

Galatians 5:24-26

And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

Personal Challenge

Does anyone out there desire to walk in the Spirit? I know that I sure do. Then why is it so difficult to get to that place in our spiritual journey so that we can be doing this? I think Paul tells us why in this letter to the Galatians. Let’s work backward. Paul tells us to walk in the Spirit. Before that, he indicates that if we are to walk in the Spirit, we need to live in the Spirit. How do we live in the Spirit? We do this by crucifying the flesh with its passions and desires. Now, this is starting to get really personal. So, what is this about crucifying the flesh? We are not to become conceited in ourselves or in the things that God has done for us. We are to avoid provoking and envying one another, which stems from loving our neighbor. It is possible to walk in the Spirit, but it requires an active choice to live for Christ daily. Glory be to God!