May His Goodness Refresh Our Soul and Mind
Scripture Passage: Jeremiah 31:10-14 (NASB)
10 Hear the word of the Lord, you nations,
And declare it in the coastlands far away,
And say, “He who scattered Israel will gather him,
And He will keep him as a shepherd keeps his flock.”
11 For the Lord has ransomed Jacob
And redeemed him from the hand of him who was stronger than he.
12 “They will come and shout for joy on the height of Zion,
And they will be radiant over the bounty of the Lord—
Over the grain, the new wine, the oil,
And over the young of the flock and the herd.
And their life will be like a watered garden,
And they will never languish again.
13 Then the virgin will rejoice in the dance,
And the young men and the old together;
For I will turn their mourning into joy
And comfort them, and give them joy for their sorrow.
14 I will refresh the soul of the priests with abundance,
And My people will be satisfied with My goodness,” declares the Lord.
SUMMARY
God tells His people and the nations that He who scattered Israel will gather them back, that He will deliver His people. At that time the Israelites will rejoice in the bounty that God gives them. Young and old will dance and be glad together, and God will turn mourning into joy.
MEDITATION
After 8 years of desperately trying to balance my life between work and motherhood and after a few years of feeling completely swamped, exhausted and overwhelmed, I finally submitted a letter of resignation to my work this week. Since I became a mom, God has increasingly convicted my heart to surrender and let go of my work. Yet I could not do so until now, because I was afraid of losing everything that I had worked my whole life to achieve professionally. But God graciously gave me strength and courage to take that leap of faith, to trust him and to cultivate what matters most in my life in light of eternity - family, faith and my mental and physical health.
I once thought that hard work was one of the highest virtues that one can have. But I realize now that God doesn’t just want us to work hard if such work is merely to achieve my own goals. What God really desires is for me to understand God’s purposes for my life. I need to pray for God’s wisdom so I can recognize and cultivate what matters most during the current season of my life. Hard work without a Godly purpose is just running the race aimlessly without even knowing why. I must say though that because my faith is still so weak, even after turning in that letter of resignation, I still found myself wondering during my quiet time: “Lord, did I make the right choice? Can I really trust you?” And God responded with a gentle and loving whisper, reassuring me through today’s passage that says, “I will refresh your tired and overwhelmed body and soul with abundance and you will be satisfied with my goodness.” (ver. 14) In other words, “trust me and you will be ok.”
APPLICATION
During this season of rest that God has allowed, I want to be in better shape and get strong physically and spiritually. I will spend more time getting to know God more intimately by reading his words and do daily walk/work out consistently.
PRAYER
Lord, thank you for rescuing me from myself. For years I have pursued my own path, and You allowed me to do so. You gave me career opportunities and allowed me the time and energy to pursue them. But now You’ve reminded me that I have a different purpose. Help me Lord to pursue Your will, not mine. Help me to seek out Your will, to understand Your desire for me fully, and to obey. Help me to be satisfied with Your goodness above all. In Jesus’s name I pray. Amen.
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