WEEK ONE - DAY FIVE - WHITE FLAG ANXIETY and RECAP OF FIRST WEEK!

As I sit down to my laptop this afternoon, a myriad of problems that I want God to intervene in right this very minute are on my mind:  a friend whose husband is in the ER with severe bleeding into his lungs; another whose husband has been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer; my sister-in-law who is in rehab following surgery for a broken femur and who is also battling cancer; a friend whose one child is facing divorce and another who is struggling with financial issues; and multiple family issues of my own where I want God to act...fast...like right now!  I want God to take my prayers seriously...they are important!  And they demand His attention and His intervention quickly...does He get it?

Jeremiah had the same concerns.  Did God truly understand what He was facing and was He ever going to do something to help him?  His words recorded in Jeremiah 15:18 reflect his inner turmoil and his uncertainty as to God's help: Why has my pain become unending, my wound incurable, refusing to be healed? You truly have become like a mirage to me— water that is not reliable.  Can you relate?  Things that we pray about for what seems such a long time, and we don't seem to get any answers.  Remember, Jeremiah preached for 40 years without getting the results he was praying for.  And the thing we come to truly love about our friend, Jeremiah, is that he doesn't hold back when he talks to God...he tells God just how he's feeling.  We can too!  

When I'm discouraged with life, I can tell God that.  When I'm discouraged with God's involvement in my life, I can tell Him that too!  Jeremiah told God that he felt like God was a mirage to him...how could he know if God was even real?

Did God chastise Jeremiah for his discouragement and for his complaints?  No, He answered him.  He told him in verse 11, "Surely I will deliver you for a good purpose..."; in verse 21, "I will save you from the hands of the wicked...".  

How do we translate God's promises to Jeremiah to our problems?  We can rely on the good plans that God has for us, and for others.  We can be assured that no matter what we are going through, He is ready to show more of Himself to us through these times.  He will protect us and save us from evil when we surrender to His good ways.  Sometimes, rather than praying for all the problems to be fixed (and fixed posthaste, if You don't mind, Lord!), maybe we should be praying for more of a revelation to us, and to all those going through these problems, of God and His purposes for our lives...to grow through the times of trials so that we can carry with us the knowledge that, no matter what, God is always with us and He is reliable to care for His children.

This is "white flag anxiety"...the point where we're called to surrender our lives into God's reliable hands and the reluctance we have in doing that.  Is He truly good and Is He truly able?  YES and YES!  This is the essence of faith...trusting it all to our Holy Father who loves us.  

This brings us to the point where we reconsider our memory verse for this week, Jeremiah 15:16, "When I discovered Your words, I devoured them.  They are my joy and my heart's delight, for I bear Your name, O LORD God of Heaven's Armies." And the following verse, "I never joined the people in their merry feasts. I sat alone because your hand was on me. I was filled with indignation at their sins."  We studied that Jeremiah did two things in his time of seeking...he devoured God's Word and he kept to himself, not conforming to the ways of his contemporaries, not bending to the sinfulness of his society.  We would be wise to follow his example...keep ourselves submersed in the Word of God and don't allow ourselves to be influenced by bending to societal norms when they are in opposition to what God has asked of us.  As stated in our study, "We should be women who draw others to our God rather than women who are pulled away from Him by our culture."  Amen to that!  

So!  What has our first week of getting to know Jeremiah taught us?  When we review Jeremiah 1-5 what are the lessons we have taken away?  

Here are my bullet points --- feel free to share yours!

• We are known by God from the very beginning of our lives - within our mother's womb.  He knows us, He cares for us, and He has plans for us!
• We have no excuses that will stand up against God's calling for us.  Whatever He is asking of us, we're wasting our time arguing with Him about it!  He knows us - and He still asked us to participate.  What an honor...no matter what the request is...let's start bypassing the excuse hour and begin by smiling in anticipation of what we're about to experience with God by our side!  "Get yourself ready!"
• Remember what God has already done for us (loved us, sent His Son for us, forgiven us, promised us eternal life, and showered us with earthly blessings along the way) and retain our first love.  Don't exchange our glorious God for worthless idols, don't exchange springs of living water for man-made cisterns that leak!
• God will not be mocked, and He will not allow His children to continually live in rebellion.  He will discipline both for their good and for their growth, and for His integrity.  If we turn our backs on Him, we can either confess our rebellion to Him and repent, or we can expect His judgment to come upon us.  He has taught us this principle, just as He had taught it to Israel, and He is true to His Word.  
• HE is the cure for our sinfulness and our backsliding; we cannot do it on our own.  We have to surrender to Him and allow Him to plow up our hardened hearts and to replant (transform) us so that we can grow into the women He has designed us to be.  Without God, we are senseless children with no understanding, skilled in doing evil. (4:23)
• While God disciplines and while He brings destruction, He always leaves something to come back to...He always leaves us with hope of renewal.  The people of Judah heard these words, "Yet even in those days...I will not destroy you completely." 5:18.  We have this glorious hope in eternity, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away." Matthew 24:35  "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared."  Revelation 21:1.  God always gives us the hope of our next home.
• Be the ONE person!  Be the person who deals honestly and seeks the truth.  Be that person whose God's eyes land on when they are ranging throughout the earth looking for those who earnestly seek Him!  Never give up, even if you're standing alone...because you're never alone..." 'for I am with you and will rescue you,' declares the Lord."