Jeremiah_29-11: For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end

“’For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the LORD. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.’”

(Jeremiah 29:11)

Does God’s work in your world seem to go at a snail’s pace? Do you feel frustrated that real change in your nation, your neighborhood, your family – your own soul – takes too long? Imagine how God’s ancient peoples felt.

After Nebuchadnezzar conquered Jerusalem (586 BC), the Judeans who were taken into captivity questioned whether God had abandoned them. They struggled to understand how God’s promise could be true that a descendant of David would always rule as king in Jerusalem (2 Samuel 7:13; Psalm 132:11-12). They grappled…