This is what the Lord says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. 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. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. Jeremiah 29:10-12
This week’s message continues our series: Light Bulb Moments: When God Shows Up. As we look at Jeremiah 29:1-14, God’s people had planned to remain in Israel and Jerusalem forever, as they believed God had promised them. However, their sins, in particular, worshiping other gods, caused God to allow the Babylonian Empire to defeat Israel, destroy Jerusalem, destroy the Temple, and lead the Jewish people into captivity for 70 years.
This passage tells us of God’s people in exile. Even though the Jewish people had failed to keep their covenant with God, God showed up to remind them that He still had plans for them. This week we will discuss this passage and what it means for us today. What happens when our plans change? What happens when everything seems hopeless or beyond us? It is often the case that our plans and God’s plans are in tension. Join us this week as we learn that, “when God shows up, plans are changed."