I want the easy life. I want good health, a secure and decent paying job, a life free from tyranny. I want my kids to have a better life than mine. I want sun on my vacations and a retirement that is filled with no stress and lots of play. I want…
I don’t think I am alone. The US Constitution guarantees the rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. I know it reads ‘pursuit of happiness’, but what people really want is happiness, the pursuit part can be difficult. We want happiness, guaranteed and handed to us on the proverbial platter. And happiness is the good life, right?
I am musing about all of this because Jeremiah, one of the greats of the OT, got none of this. God may have set him aside from birth, but his call was a hard one. The words he was given to speak on behalf of God are blacker than black, filled with doom and gloom. He gets to tell the people that God is fed up with them and judgment is coming! And he reaps the reward of disrespect and hardship because of what he is called to say.
As near as we can tell, Jeremiah’s life was filled with hardship and heartache. How can this be? He is doing exactly what God wants. He is faithful to the Lord.
Jeremiah’s life was not about “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness;” instead he gave his life to the pursuit of ‘faithfulness to the Lord.’ In earthly terms, his return on investment might not have stacked up but eternally he received an exponential return…
Thinking about Jeremiah, I am sensing a need to refocus my life…
Anyone willing to add “the pursuit of faithfulness to the Lord” to their New Year’s resolutions?
Oh God, I am willing… Lord Jesus, Holy Spirit, help me to make the pursuit of faithfulness to You my priority for this year and the remainder of my life. Amen.
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