Friday, February 10, 2023

Today’s Scripture Reading 
Jeremiah 17:5–10

Thus says the Lord: Cursed are those who trust in mere mortals and make mere flesh their strength, whose hearts turn away from the Lord. They shall be like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see when relief comes. They shall live in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land. Blessed are those who trust in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. They shall be like a tree planted by water, sending out its roots by the stream. It shall not fear when heat comes, and its leaves shall stay green; in the year of drought it is not anxious, and it does not cease to bear fruit. The heart is devious above all else; it is perverse—who can understand it? I the Lord test the mind and search the heart, to give to all according to their ways, according to the fruit of their doings. (NRSV)

Reflection
Poor Jeremiah. He could not have been a popular guy! Throughout the book of Jeremiah, the people of God are experiencing one catastrophe after another: battle, war, invasion, destruction, deportation, and exile. And all the while the prophet Jeremiah appears to be the harbinger of curse and doom. What’s worse, Jeremiah speaks for God—so at first glance, it appears that God is completely content with an agenda of punishment and vengeance upon humanity. But a closer dive into the text reveals quite the opposite.

At this point in the people of God’s story, the Babylonians (their enemies) are coming and will wreak havoc on them. And they were told it would happen. God offered protection and care by establishing a covenant with the people, but they rejected it (and God) by placing their trust in false prophets, other gods, and mortal kings. And yet God is not deterred by the people’s bad choices. Rather than giving up completely, God through Jeremiah offers the people another chance to return to relationship with God. Those who put their trust in God, who return to a relationship with God, will know a level of love and care unimaginable. As painful and heartbreaking as our actions against God might be, as terrible as they must be to look upon in our minds and hearts, God refuses to turn away.

For me, that’s perhaps the most important lesson in all of scripture: God is stubborn in loving us.

Again and again, we are invited through prophets and pastors to return to a relationship with God.

And no matter what we have done, God is ready to welcome us home.

Prayer
O God, I am in awe that you would continue to love me despite my quickness at times to turn away. Help me to remain as stubborn as you in loving you back. Amen.

Written by Shawn Fiedler, Major Gifts Officer

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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