A PROMISE FOR 2015

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare (peace, prosperity, success) and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11, ESV).

When Jeremiah shared this prophetic promise, the Jews were in exile in Babylon—and this did not mean they were sent away for a vacation. Exile was very much like going to prison and serving a hard sentence as a slave in a foreign and hostile nation.

The Jewish nation had become so corrupt and disobedient that God decided to bring an end to it. He decreed defeat and exile for the rebellious nation, hoping to bring it back to its senses. Jeremiah prophesied to the Jews and told them exactly what would happen, and how long they would remain captives and be in exile. The drama then unfolded precisely as Jeremiah predicted.

The Jews were in a very discouraging and troubling time as the conditions of the exile came to pass. To make the situation more confusing for the exiles, false prophets began to say that Jeremiah had God’s message wrong; that everything was going to be fine; that very shortly the Jews would be going back to Jerusalem.

At this time of confusion and discouragement for the exiled Jews, Jeremiah shares this powerful prophetic promise that has strong implications for us during the “tough, chaotic times” into which our world is descending.

Here is God’s promise to us for 2015!

“For I know” — The Hebrew word for “know” is yada. This is the word used in Genesis 4:1: “And Adam knew (yada) Eve.” This phrase speaks of the very intimate involvement of the Lord in our circumstances. The fulfillment of this promise is not just for the Jews in exile, but for you as an individual.

“The plans I have for you” — The picture here is of the thoughtful preparation and planning by a master craftsman as he begins to work on a piece of art. He carefully selects just the right materials, the right colors and the right tools to bring the work to completion. The craftsman knows exactly how and where the finished work will be used and under what conditions, and his plan takes every detail into account. God has personally laid out detailed plans for you for your future; no detail has missed His attention.

“Plans for welfare” — Some translations say “plans to prosper you.” This promise encompasses all aspects of your life—your safety, your health and your well-being.

The promise is that God will watch over and protect, provide for, and bring prosperity to those who return to Him. God’s plans for you are not only thorough but are thought-out with your best interests at heart. The word “welfare” is a bigger word than just the limited definition of financial blessing or physical well-being, for it includes all aspects of our physical, spiritual and emotional health; it includes our vocational life and our future.

“Hope”— This is an extremely interesting word. It speaks of an expectancy that God is going to do something great, but it also speaks of a rope (see Joshua 2:18, 21). Joshua tells us the story of the scarlet cord that Rahab the prostitute hung out her window that protected her during the Jewish invasion. The Hebrew word used for cord/line is the same word that is used in Jeremiah 29 for hope. Hope, then, is a type of spiritual lifeline for us to hold on to when things around us are not going well at all. Hope is not inferior to faith; hope is the expectancy that as God has worked for us in the past, so He will again. We are literally to grab on to hope and not let go. God has thrown us a prophetic lifeline and it is hope; it is trust in Him and His eternal purposes and plans for our life.

Into the chaos of circumstance, with a laser-like sharpness, there comes a promise that the Holy Spirit quickens to our hearts and we realize that we have not been forgotten; we have not been abandoned; we are not adrift on a sea of chaos—but God is still on the throne and is still guiding the affairs of our life!

Like all promises, this promise is conditional. We have to ask ourselves, “Will we accept it? Will we embrace this truth?” Will we pursue the plans and purposes of God knowing that He has our best interests at heart or will we try to tell Him how He should do things? Are we ready to pray as Jesus did, “Your will be done” (Matthew 26:42) or will we, through our actions, say, “My will be done. What I want is what counts”?

God’s will is that you will know Him in His fullness in 2015!