I'm Just Overthinking, Right?

For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. [Jeremiah 29.11]

We frequently hear sermons or teachings on this passage of scripture but rarely hear much focus on the verse preceding it:

This is what the LORD says: “You will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised, and I will bring you home again. [Jeremiah 23.10]

Because of Judah's sin, they were cursed to captivity in Babylon for seventy years.

What does this really say to us today? I mean, we love to quote Jeremiah 29.11, but not so much Jeremiah 29.10 - especially the seventy years banishment - the curse.

Sin is not without its consequence. We see that all around us today, but we refuse to acknowledge it. Sickness, disease, poverty and troubles abound, but for the most part, people today simply accept it as 'normal' and never give repentance a thought. If we fail to see our trials in light of sin, how will we ever accurately anticipate deliverance from those trials?

Can I just point out that if we look to our own devices for our deliverance, there is no way we will comprehend God's plans (of good and not disaster) for our lives.

Could God have been telling us through Jeremiah how to deal with curses on the sin of our lives today? Jeremiah told the people to build houses and live life in Babylon. What? Yes, he told them they might as well 'settle in' to their curse (captivity) because God would be their deliverer in time. Hmm.

In today's society, we would never receive such a message. Instead, we have a fix for everything. Insurance for our losses, medicine for our ailments, entertainment for our loneliness, and a host of other "fixes" disallow us from comprehending the consequences of sin (loss, sickness, separation) and put our hope for deliverance in the "fix" instead of God. Hmm.

Today, we have Jesus. He presented Himself as our hope and future. He is our curse Redeemer. But, is our hope truly in Him? In our curses, do we turn to Him? Or, do we turn to our own devices? Be sure of your answer before you blurt out religious brainwashing...

I am sure I am just overthinking this, right?

Father, help me to comprehend Your Word for what it says and not for what is convenient for me.