Are You In The Pits? #159

Lamentations 3:22-26 22 The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease.
 23 Great is his faithfulness;
his mercies begin afresh each morning.
24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!”25 The Lord is good to those who depend on him,
to those who search for him.
 26 So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the Lord.

Is there hope? That would have been the cry of Jeremiah as he faced the overwhelming scene of the city of Zion. The city is in ruble, the people have been taken into captivity, and he himself is in the depths of despair. It is not a pretty scene. The once magnificent city of David is broken and its people destroyed. In the first 21 verses of chapter three he describes his personal feelings. He has experienced the wrath of God. He is broken. The very body in which he dwells is feeling old. He feels trapped with no escape.

He feels deserted by God. His prayers are of no avail. The people mock him. He cries for help, but no one does anything. Inner peace has alluded him. The wealth he once enjoyed is no more. Only poverty surrounds him. He is bitter and downcast. Maybe the worst thing of all is that HE HAS NO HOPE of anything ever getting better. He is overcome with the feelings of hopelessness. Ever been there?

Jeremiah finds hope. His only hope is in God. It is in God whose love never ends, whose mercy is new every morning, and whose faithfulness is great. The conclusion of Jeremiah is that there really is hope. Hope is not in the circumstances or the troubles or sorrows, but his hope is in the Lord. Thus he decides, “I will depend on Him.” Maybe you are in the pit with Jeremiah today. Look to your only real hope. It is in the Almighty God, the Lord of your life. He is full of mercy, and love for you today. Depend on Him with all your heart. HE IS FAITHFUL!!

_______________Today's personal note from Dennis

Greetings from home in Tempe, AZ

I do hope your week has been filled with the comfort, strength, hope, mercy, l

ove and grace of God. I have a hard time imagining how we can make it without the presence of our Lord and all He does for us and is in us.

Sandy is going to be team teaching at FBC Tempe on a Tuesday morning study for women. She is excited about that. I have been asked to preach the 6PM service at FBC on the 28th.This coming Sunday Aug 21 I will be preaching twice at Laveen Baptist Church in Laveen, AZ.

I have also been allowed the privilege of preaching at the First Baptist Ch

urch of Clairemont, San Diego, CA on September 4th.

We continue to praise God for opportunities to teach His word and to encourage God's servants.

All three of our older grandsons are in school. Collin just started a week ago Monday. Little Johnny is doing very well. He is chronologically 5 months old. His adjusted age is 3 months. He weighs 16 plus pounds. Sandy is helping care for him a couple of times a week. She loves

every minute of it.

I do pray that God blesses you with His presence and reveals to you that He is what you are seeking.

God is good. In His wonderful love. ~ DGW