Jeremiah 29:11, For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Now you might be familiar with this verse, you may have heard it before, but most people don’t know the situation the Israelites were in when they heard these words spoken by the prophet Jeremiah. Because of willful disobedience, God allowed the Babylonians to defeat the Israelites and take them captive to Babylon for 70 years. The Israelites were so discouraged, they felt like failures and the bad times just seemed like they would never end. In was in this situation that Jeremiah told the Israelites: God has a wonderful plan for your life! In God you have a hope and a future!
So here’s my user-friendly definition of hope based off Jeremiah 29:11 – Hope is confidence that God will turn your situation around.
What situation do you need God to turn around?
1. Do you need your family situation turned around?
- Maybe your marriage is hanging on by a thread and if something doesn’t change you’ll know you’ll end up divorced.
- Maybe you have a problem child (to put it mildly) and you’re at your wits end.
- God wants to give you hope today that he can turn your family situation around!
2. Do you need your financial situation turned around?
- Are you trying to save for a downpayment on a home but keep having setbacks?
- Are you trying to get out of debt?
- Are you trying to sell your home?
- God wants to give you hope today that he can turn your financial situation around.
3. Do you need a health related issue to be turned around?
- Are you sick?
- Do you need healing? God wants to give you hope today that he can turn your health situation around!
- Just this week I received the following testimony via the “share your story” link on our website: Three weeks ago I was healed of a back injury when I asked for prayer after service. I had pain that went down my leg, the top of my foot and toe. The pain had been with me a month, but after we prayed, it was gone within the week. Praise the Lord for his healing power!
4. Do you need a work situation turned around?
- Some of you are very unhappy at work.
- You may or may not need to leave the company, but you know that something has got to change.
- God wants to give you hope today that he can turn your work situation around!
Whatever the situation you need turned around, know this: In God you have a bright and hopeful future!