Jeremiah 29

This is a highlight chapter. I could go on and on. So I am leaving some things out.

The best thing my father taught me as a boy growing up and the second best thing I have taught my children is to "bloom where you are planted". Right now, for example, one daughter is learning to be a farmer. She is striving to learn so that she can be the best farmer she can be. Another daughter is a cafeteria lady. While they might not seem like much she is striving to be the best she can be. She is a leader and a valued assistant to her boss. She could easily be a crew leader.

This is what Jeremiah tells the exiles (v.5) "build houses and live in them, plant gardens and eat their produce (v.6) take wives and become the father of sons and daughters". Jeremiah probably does not think it his place to instruct women.

False prophets are telling them there what they want to hear. They will be redeemed immediately and come back to the promised land, God's land, home, the land of their fathers. They do not want to ever feel at home in Babylon. The exiles feel uprooted, strangers in a strange land. They do not want to learn a new language and learn new customs.

Jeremiah is telling them they can have it both ways. They can be God's people outside of God's land. God is still God wherever they are. God has repeatedly told them he is much bigger than they imagine. Through the psalms and the prophets he has told them he is Lord of the universe. He does not dwell in a temple made of human hands.

They are familiar with the god's around them that are thought to only have authority in one particular place. They have to be told over and over that God is everywhere. We too need to be told how big God is. And yet he still surprises us.

God is telling them (and us) two things in this chapter. First be fruitful and pray for the welfare of your city (v.7). Pray for peace in your city and by extension your country. And the peace you pray for others will be your peace too. We are to be generous in our minds, not begrudging others good things. It is a nice thing to pray for the general good, for the just and the unjust as it were. And this good will fall back on us too.

Right now we thank God for this rain I can hear falling outside. It is a blessing for all of us in Houston.

Secondly remember that you are sort of like exiles. Your true home is in heaven. Don't live as those in this sinful dominate culture do. It has always been thus. Jesus said, "If you are ashamed of me in this adulterous generation then I will be ashamed of you when I come back for you again." (strongly paraphrased) There are lots of things to be ashamed about in our dominate culture. Let us instead identify with Jesus, as Christians, and live as he said for us to. We are to first identity ourselves as Christians, not as an American, or whatever our culture of birth.

Be fair in your business dealings and do not sleep around. We see many in our culture who do try to cheat and cut corners in business and many who think nothing of sleeping around. Let us not live like that. And God will bless you in this world and the next.