Jeremiah 43

Day 44: Jeremiah 43:1-13

Azariah son of Hoshaiah and Johanan son of Kareah and all the arrogant men said to Jeremiah, "You are lying! The LORD our God has not sent you to say, 'You must not go to Egypt to settle there (Jeremiah 43:2, NIV).

                People can have a tendency to ask God what they should do not for Him to actually give them the answer of what is best but so that He will confirm or approve what they already want to do. My life application study bible said it best, “Johanan and his tiny band had come to Jeremiah for God’s approval of their plan, not for God’s direction.” They asked God where they should go but when Jeremiah told them what the Lord said they called him a liar. The reality is that the plans that God has for us may not always line up with the plans that we have for ourselves but we can rest assured that God knows what is best for us. The great thing about God is that He is not like a lot of the people pleasing people around us that will tell us any and everything that we want to hear. God is not a yes man that is going to speak words to tickle your ears and keep you happy even if it’s at the cost of telling you a lite. He is going to tell us the truth and what we need to hear even if we don’t like it because He knows what is for our benefit. He wants to lead and guide us into all righteousness not all selfishness. At some point we have to lay down our will so that God’s will can be done in our lives. Otherwise we will continue to fight against Him and end up stuck in the same position because of our on disobedience. When God gives you an answer that is either not what you want to hear or opposite of the plan you had already created for yourself take a moment and ask God that His will be done knowing that whatever direction He is leading you is for your good.