11 For I know the plans that I [a]have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for [b]prosperity and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And you will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. 14 I will let Myself be found by you,’ declares the LORD, ‘and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you,’ declares the LORD, ‘and I will bring you back to the place from where I sent you into exile.’ Jeremiah 29
It has been said that courage is not the absence of fear but the presence of God. Indeed, Christians are not and cannot be brave by themselves.
Even Christians are not exempted from troubles of life. Even Christians suffer from anxiety, fears and grief. Yet as followers of Jesus in the way of the cross, we are called to be brave because we know that our Lord will not leave us alone in our sufferings.
When I was journeying along the path of the big C, when my parents died within 5 months of each other, when I was in and out of depression battling anxiety attacks, when I was at the end of the rope, hanging on by the skin of my teeth, God never let me go.
Even when all seemed dark and dreary, even when I could not see His face or hear His voice, even amidst life’s uncertainties, God is still God. He strengthens, He is my help. He is righteous and He holds me up through it all!
God’s Word came to Jeremiah, the weeping prophet during a dark time in the history of Israel when their people were in captivity, in exile in Babylon. They were told to stay in the foreign land, build their homes and raise their families. Through it all, God is God. He was their strength, their help and their stronghold, their dwelling place – home away from home.
Are you fearful, my friend? Are you dismayed, in distress? Are you worried about many things and realities of living, beyond your control? Take courage and know the God who is righteous and kind.
Read the Bible, seek and know God – He will not let you go. He will be found by you if you seek him with all your heart.
While the verses above were spoken and applied to the Jewish exiles, God’s chosen people in a very dark time in their history, they give us hope..
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow, blessings all mine with ten thousand beside. Great is thy faithfulness, morning by morning new blessings I see. All I have needed, thy hand hath provided. Great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me.