Hope in the midst of affliction form Lamentations chapter 3

Hello My Friend; Good day.

Our reading for today is from Lamentations chapter 3. It is a long and interesting reading comprising 66 verses like the 66 books of the Bible. It reads like an acrostic poem. In this chapter, Jeremiah shows us that even in the darkest moment there is hope and assurance in God; that God is faithful and you can call Him Faithful for a name. No wonder some people name their children "Faith" for God! Jeremiah was excited beyond his wildest dreams when he found out that those who were exiled to Babylon were not killed and that they were safe. He wrote about God's mercy and unfailing love in verses 21-26 thus:"Yet there is a ray of hope: his compassion never ends. It is only the Lord's mercies that have kept us from complete destruction. Great is his faithfulness; his loving kindness begins afresh each day. My soul claims the Lord as my inheritance for I will hope in him."

My Friend, it does not get any better! Jeremiah's poem sings like music and tastes like fresh wine. No wonder David exclaims in the Psalms, "O taste and see that the Lord is good". Jeremiah remembers how the Lord came to his rescue when they threw him into a cistern and covered it and the water covered his head. He cried to the Lord and the Lord sent help for him through Ebed-melech the Ethiopian( see Jeremiah 38:1-13). Jeremiah used that experience to illustrate the picture of his nation sinking into sin and the power of God to rescue them if they repent. What is your experience of God's redemptive power? If you have experienced it, praise His name, but if not, place your hope in Him and it will surprice you what the Lord can do. It is better than money in the bank.

Prayer for today as adapted from verses 55-66: "O Lord, you are my layer! Plead my case!For you have redeemed my life. You have seen the wrong they do to me; be my Judge, to prove me right. You have seen the plots my foes have laid against me.....O Lord, repay them well for all the evil they have done. Harden their hearts and and curse them, Lord. Go after them in fierce pursuit and wipe them off the earth,beneath the heavens of the Lord." Amen.