Lamentations 2

Let me just say I am not oriented to Houston yet. I got amazingly sleepy at 4 PM yesterday, went home and slept from 5 until 11. I realized that corresponded to 11 PM to 7 AM in the morning in Israel. Proper sleeping hours in Israel, not in Houston. After 11 I just could not sleep at all. I read and caught up on computer. Then dozed until 6:30 AM this morning when I got up for work.

Work: We are moving down the hall to a smaller office. We have been here for over 20 years so a lot of emotional decisions must be made.

Jeremiah had to prophesy a tough message. It cost him. Are we called to speak to someone (or some group) a prophesy that is like the one Jeremiah had to speak? Prophesy is about leadership. MP has been leading in a prophetic way in his sermons. He has the authority as the pastor of my church. Most of us do not have that kind of authority over a congregation. But most of us do have places where we have some moral influence, if not authority. I think parents have this kind of authority but it should be used humbly and carefully. Jeremiah backed his words up with examples and evidence. It is not enough to simply make a generic statement that likely seems like a put down.

Jeremiah was concerned and mourned when God's judgment came. That is what Lamentations is all about. When God's judgment came Go, the loving God, seemed to be an adversary to his own people, "his footstool" (v.1).

When God actually opposes us, when he punishes us, is it a natural consequence of our selfish ungodly choices or is God against us. Whatever it truly is, when it is happening it looks like God is our adversary. We feel like blaming God.

People refer to the Holocaust when they read this chapter. We ask "Where is God?" (vs. 21-22) is such awful situations. The invasion of Israel and the murder of a majority of the citizens of Israel in Jeremiah's time was a similar atrocity. Everyone who survived asked bitterly "Where is God?" Jeremiah was sent to answer this awful question. He hated it.

We can only humbly empathize with those who have actually gone through such atrocities. Unfortunately it still happens in Sudan, in Bosnia, in Rwanda, and others less publicized. God is there and he weeps.