8.Welcome to day 8 of our 4 week prayer adventure.

Receive hope by recalling God’s insight. “Why should any living mortal, or any man, offer complaint in view of his sins? Let us examine and probe our ways, and let us return to the Lord.” Lamentations 3:39,40

Here we see God giving Jeremiah insight into the situation from God’s perspective. If God actually dealt with us according to our sins, we would have been consumed long ago. Over and over, God had told His people that He would send the Babylonians if they didn’t repent, if they don’t turn back to Him and start living right. God gave them plenty of warnings. How did they respond? ‘Ah, Jeremiah, you’re no fun, you ruin our parties with your negative message. You’re a party pooper, Jeremiah. Why don’t you entertain us, tell us a few jokes, be positive, then you can stay, but if you keep up with all this God is going to get us unless we repent stuff, then you can get lost, because we’re not changing our ways. God is going to have to change, not us.’ And how did that work out for them? And yet we have lots of people saying that today.

When God disciplines us today, it’s for our good, as Paul writes that tribulations bring perseverance, then proven character, then hope! Also, please remember that God doesn’t punish believers. All our punishment was laid on Christ on the cross. But now, God will discipline His children, as any loving father does, and it will always be ultimately, for His glory and our good. So, when things happen to me and I start complaining, God reminds me of this verse, 3:39.

We have all sinned. No one can say to God: ‘not fair, not fair.’ God hasn’t punished an innocent person yet. He has never been unfair a single time. But let me add, when we are disciplined, it’s not always because we have sinned. Jesus answers that very clearly in John 9:3. But when we are under affliction of some sort, it is reasonable to consider our ways, to ask what the Lord is trying to teach us. That would be a wise response, a humble response, a Christian response. Then, if necessary, to repent and return to God and His ways.

So, when we go through tough times, no matter what we might have lost, a job, a loved one, health, a financial setback, moral purity or our integrity; one message here is that we have not been abandoned. The Lord is with us. He is still willing to faithfully and mercifully meet our needs. He is way more patient than we would ever be. Be it done to you according to your faith.

Trust God, He is your hope and help. He can give you hope no matter what kind of tough times you may be experiencing.