In Exile: Trust the Promise

Almost six hundred years before the time of Jesus, his people, the Israelites, were in crisis. Their capital, Jerusalem, and the surrounding region, Judea, were destroyed and occupied by the invading force of Babylon. Many had been injured, killed, made homeless, and the rest forced into exile from their homeland. Could the people of God survive?

Into this crisis a prophet named Jeremiah spoke-up on behalf of God. Jeremiah offered words of encouragement to the exiles. With the movement away from faith and religious affiliation in our time, plus the degradation of our earth home, along with our own personal challenges, we may be feeling like exiles too.

This series of articles seeks to offer you some encouragement by tapping into this ancient wisdom. We continue in this series today with the words of Jeremiah 29:11, which offers hope that reverberates through the centuries: For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope. God is the source of all that is good. When we trust God, we open ourselves to the hope of God’s promised restoration.

This is not a yearning for the way things used to be, this is the hope of things being better than they ever have been. We hope and pray for the fulfillment of God’s vision of Shalom, of comprehensive well-being for all of creation. We get to work today and every day to do our part to make that vision real. Together as a community of disciples, we trust the promise of renewal and we encourage one another to share the love of Christ in every relationship and interaction. It is a simple, daily focus with a profound Divine potential. It is also a wonderful way to celebrate the rebirth of Christ in our hearts, carrying Christmas right into the New Year!

Joyous Christmastide,



Marc