ODJ: bound
November 6, 2010
The Lord is good to those who depend on Him, to those who search for Him (v.25).
READ: Lamentations 3:1-26
When you get into a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hang on a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place where the tide will turn. —Harriet Beecher Stowe When I was a kid, physical education was not my favorite subject. When my teacher would perch me on the chin-up bar, my arms would straighten and I would drop to the ground. Holding on for the one-minute goal was simply not possible.
Because he had set his life in faithful ministry to the Word of the Lord, Jeremiah obeyed when God spoke—even when the goal seemed to be impossible. Ministering to an apostate nation (Lamentations 3:14), this man of great faith knew what it meant to have an intimate relationship with Almighty God. What better position in life than to be God’s spokesperson to a nation? As a type or reflection of Christ, however, the very people into which he poured his life ended up rejecting him. Though God was his all, all of life felt bitter (vv.17-20).
In good times, most of us have little difficulty recognizing God’s faithfulness. Jeremiah, however, chose to declare the greatness of God from a position of pain. Seeing himself in the light of God’s expansive mercy, he made a decision to hold fast, even when he felt like giving up.
The familiar words in Isaiah 40:31 remind us that our struggle becomes strength when we let God take control. The Hebrew word for wait literally means “to bind together.” When we wait on the Lord, we are not passively sitting by. Rather, we are bound with Him, moving as He moves, resting as He rests (Matthew 11:29-30). Refusing to let go, we hold fast to Jesus (Revelation 2:25-26; 3:11). —Regina Franklin
When have you mistaken waiting on the Lord for passivity? Why is our attitude during waiting times as significant as our actions? In what specific area is God challenging you not to let go as you hold on to Him?
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