To have faith in God is to place one’s hope in a better future. This involves inner growth and a path to an improved life, ultimately reaching heaven. This is the standard for all people, whether they know it or not. When someone faces frustration or barriers, its because they are not aware that the human path is the road of progress toward heaven. When things go wrong, the path to take is to keep forging ahead in faith.We see an example of this in Jeremiah 29. Jeremiah sends this letter to exiles in Babylon sometime following the deportation from Jerusalem in 597 B.C.E. Jeremiah addresses issues faced by the exiles. The letter of Jeremiah consists of the following: the exiles are to build their homes in Babylon and to live peacefully there (29:5-7), ignore the false prophets who dream of an early restoration (29:8-9), be assured that God has their welfare in mind and that they will be returned to the land (29:10-14), and understand that judgment will fall on those who trust in the words of the false prophets (29:15-23). God’s plans for the exiles are laid out clearly: “plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope” (29:11). God is present and active among them for their good. The core teaching here is that God wishes His people to keep building homes, marrying, having babies and grow in numbers. In times of exile, God commands His people to forge ahead: marry, build homes, have children and know deep within that growing in numbers is a path to cementing one’s faith that God will provide, that the future is bright. Growth is the engine of the Kingdom of God, even in hard times!
God is About Hope
