Meditation

Read Jeremiah 17:5-8 —Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NIV)

The one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him…will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream.

It was one of those days when nothing seemed to go right. Milk boiled over. The dog went missing, and I was late for an appointment because the car wouldn’t start. The local repair shop was closed. Who could help? The saving grace in all this was that I could draw on the memory of God’s actions in the past, times when God had rescued me from more than one predicament and faith had sustained me.

In today’s reading, Jeremiah gave the people of Judah sound advice: stay close to God in good times, and—like a tree planted by a stream—store up the sustenance needed for times of drought. In a land of low rainfall, the indigenous trees send their roots down deep to where the water is stored and thus most survive even the worst droughts.

It’s so easy to have “spiritual amnesia” when life is going well. Maintaining a deep relationship with God during the good times sustains us during the bad times. Because of God’s actions in the past, we can be certain of God’s faithfulness in the future.

Prayer—O God, give us the right words to share our faith with someone we meet today so that they can know your love and grace. Amen.

Thought for the Day—I can drink deeply from my spiritual reserve of faith in God.

Linda Sutton (South Australia, Australia)