Surviving Any Situation

Jeremiah 29:4-14

Every person can survive any situation by accepting the guidelines relayed by Jeremiah.

Introduction:

The movie “Apollo 13” portrays the story of the successful failure of that Apollo mission. The men were on their way to the moon. However, shortly after takeoff there was an explosion. They were far enough into the mission that it did not make sense for them to turn around, so they had to orbit the moon and then return to earth. Throughout their journey they faced many obstacles. One obstacle was shutting down all unnecessary power and then restarting everything once they neared the earth again.

At one point in a scene in Mission Control, one of the men there suggests this is going to be one of the greatest accidents in history. The man who was in charge responded by saying, “to the contrary I believe this will be our finest hour.” The movie really makes it appear as if this was a very tricky situation that could have been tragic.

I would guess that the emotions of the astronauts were similar to that of some of the exiles that Jeremiah is writing to. They were in what appeared to be a hopeless situation. Jeremiah addresses them to help them survive the ordeal.

Guideline I. Thrive where you are

A. Jeremiah is in a difficult situation. He is a man who is alive and active as a prophet prior to the captivity. He warns the people of Judah and Jerusalem of the trouble that is coming their way. They reject his warnings, and end up being exiled by Babylon. Chapter 29 seems to be right in the middle of the exile. This was a letter that Jeremiah had written to those who had already been taken into exile. It is kind of a since you are in this situation here is what you need to do now.

B. The Jewish people are God’s people. Things like being carried off into exile are not supposed to happen. Even though Jeremiah had warned them of what was coming. This was not supposed to happen to them. Since it has happened Jeremiah sticks with them and he continues to give them direction on how to deal with this situation. He basically tells them in vv. 4-7 that they are supposed to make the most of their life there because they will be there for a while. They are going to be in exile for the next 70 years, so they need to learn how to live in Babylon. In v. 6 he tells them to find spouses for their children. One translation even tells them to be ready to have grandchildren there. They are to make sure that their numbers don’t decrease. When I hear that I think that God has plans for them. They are to make that their home.

C. At the end of v. 7 he tells them to “Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper." God is really indicating that this should become a home for the people who have been taken into exile. Daniel, who we have been studying, was one of those, and he was a great example of making this his home. It would be hard to be taken from your home and forced to start a new life hundreds of miles from where you were in a country you would consider enemy territory. Jeremiah’s advice is to make this new place your home. Just as you might pray for your country and maintain your home, do the same in this place. Don’t act like an alien the entire time you are there.

D. This would be a very hard situation to endure through. Imagine the Chinese invading the United States and taking one third of the citizens of this country back to China to begin a new life. It would be a real challenge to get over the trauma of the change that has been thrust upon you. Then you would also have all of the challenges of starting a new life. It would be hard. Jeremiah’s message to us would be to make this situation the best you can. Learn to thrive where you are placed.

E. This easily translates to the struggles we might face in life. We don’t like those struggles. We might even cry out to God and ask him to take them away. Maybe God wants us to learn to thrive in the middle of a sad situation. Learn to make the most of it. Learn to get beyond the hardships we don’t like. See what you can accomplish in spite of the hardships.

Guideline II. Learn God’s plans

A. In the 90’s we learned of a man named David Koresh. He was the leader of an extremist group called the “Brand Davidians.” When the news media started talking about this group we find them barricaded in their compound, and eventually this escalates into a raging fire that destroys the compound and everyone in it. All of these people who were members of this group were at one time ordinary citizens, and did not stick out as strange or extremist. We might have even considered them Christian. However, Koresh and the others had something that they wanted, and they wanted it so badly that they lost sight of reason and really what they were all about. They died for something they wanted, even though they were extremely misguided.

B. The leaders that Jeremiah is addressing could have been very much like this. They could have decided that they wanted things a certain way. They wanted it so badly they lost sight of what God wanted for them. They needed to be reminded again of God’s plans for them. A sentence that sticks out to me is in v. 8 “Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have.” It sounds in this verse that they had influenced the people they considered to be men of God so much that these men were telling them what they wanted to hear. You hope that a man of God is going to tell you the truth, not just what you want to hear. These people were encouraging their prophets to have particular dreams and Jeremiah warns about listening to them. He says they are prophesying lies.

C. Jeremiah’s approach is to communicate what God has said, in v. 8 “the Lord Almighty, the God is Israel, says.” In v. 9 “declares the Lord.” In v. 10, “This is what the Lord says.” Jeremiah’s message is from God, it is not something he has created to please those he is writing to. He is delivering the message God gave him to deliver. Then in v. 11 he uses the word plans three times. He is referring to God’s plans for His people. Jeremiah wants these people to listen to God’s plans and not wait for what they want to hear. Just because someone tells you what you want to hear does not make it true. God’s plans did not come as quickly as the people had hoped. Maybe they were looking for something that aligned with their plans better.

D. This sound a lot like our society. People move from one church to the next, not because they are looking for the truth. They are looking to hear what they want to hear. Someone might be preaching the truth, but they don’t want to hear the truth so they move on. Maybe the next place they go will be teaching lies. That will not matter to some people because truth or lie does not matter to them, what matters is hearing what is comfortable. In the New Testament Paul said, “For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.” (2Ti 4:3 NIVUS) Many in our society don’t want the truth. They just want to hear what is pleasant to them.

E. Have you fallen into that trap? Do you look for the things you are comfortable rather than the truth? Put aside your feelings and your wants. Put away your preconceived notions of what God should be telling you and listen for the truth. Are you willing to seek the truth even if it hurts?

Guideline III. Seek God

A. A few months ago I was loaned a DVD, but when it came time to return it, I could not find it. I searched everyplace I thought it might be and it could not be found. Finally I stopped looking and started another search. One the first things I came across as I began my new search was the DVD I had been looking for. It was almost like I relaxed about it and then I was able to find it. The people Jeremiah is writing to need to stop assuming they know what God is all about and return to discovering the true God.

B. These people were clearly looking for answers, but they were looking in the wrong places. The people they had discovered were people who told them what they wanted to hear. Jeremiah tells them to seek the Lord. His brand of seeking was very intentional. It was not just a take a peek and if you can’t find it, oh well. When a person looses their child they go all out to have that child returned. They will call for the police to help them. There might be helicopters brought in. Volunteers will be sought out to help with the recovery of this child. The parents might even hire private firms to get that child back. I have to believe that this is the kind of seeking that Jeremiah was looking for. He wanted them to seek God with the same sense of enthusiasm and urgency. He wanted them to look for God without resting.

C. Jeremiah tells them that when they seek God with that level of resources they will find him. He might not be in the first or second place they look. They need to diligently seek God. God will be found after you have looked for him. Once those people have acquired that level of thirst for God, they will find him and he will bring them back. Remember it will take seventy years for these people to get this thirsty.

D. Probably most of the people who are here and most of the people we would find in our society would agree that they are seeking God. They might be looking for God, but they have not gotten to the point of seeking him. They are not diligently looking for him.

Conclusion:

Our lives might not be free from trouble, but we can learn to survive in every situation.