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The people of Judah where Jeremiah was a prophet had fallen into sin and were about to reap what they had sown. The Lord said to Jeremiah. 16 I will pronounce judgment on my people for all their evil— for deserting me and burning incense to other gods. Yes, they worship idols made with their own hands! 17 “Get up Jeremiah and prepare for action. Go out and tell them everything I tell you to say. Do not be afraid of them, or I will make you look foolish in front of them. [1]Jeremiah 1:16-17.
How do I turn my life around when I walking down the wrong path? Maybe you are on that path now or have been in the past. When I was a young man there was a time where I was going nowhere spiritually, which meant I was going backward. Like erosion you don’t realize you are going backward because it is a gradual fade. At the time I didn’t realize how lost I was.
Jeremiah was instructed by the Lord to speak truth into the lives of the people to draw them back. For me that truth came in a loss of a job and no job in sight. I didn’t realize I had entered into a timeout to think where I was at. When the money stopped coming in it got my attention. It was like coming to a dead end in a road.
In life we don’t always look at difficult times as God pulling us back from the edge of a cliff. Only when time goes by and we have a greater perspective we see God’s hand moving us in a different direction. My life had taken me into the desert and God had to intervene to lead me back to green pastures.
Taking your walk with Jesus seriously is not a magic formula. God uses a variety of situations to lead us away from our own destruction. If you need help along your journey cry out to God. Lord what do I need to do? Lord send someone into my life to help me. Lord help me to follow you. If you are truly seeking the Lord, he will show up in ways you do not expect.
James 4:8 Come close to God, and God will come close to you. [2]
To hear the story of Jeremiah’s call as a prophet of God, listen here: https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/series/journey-with-jeremiah/called-of-god
To learn more listen to these teachings:
[1, 2]Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation(Jeremiah 1:16–17, James 4:8a). Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.