June 27, 2023

Jeremiah 16: 8 “And do not enter a house where there is feasting and sit down to eat and drink.” (NIV)

Sometimes we forego what makes us temporarily happy in order to pursue a life of holiness.*

There are many careers that take a toll on one’s personal life - law enforcement and espionage come to mind. Long hours, erratic schedules, and secrets can wreak havoc on families – so much that some give up on real life and choose to “be the job.” Jeremiah the prophet had a similar experience. Perhaps he could have chosen not to accept his mission, but he was called by God and so he became the job. It is not surprising that he remained “reluctant, insecure, and often unhappy”* in his career. As this verse indicates, apparently his job description included, “Don’t have any fun.” 

Most of us will never know what it means to suffer in service to God. Our sacrifices require nothing more extreme than inconvenience. If you haven’t been called to a ministry of suffering, don’t feel guilty. As someone has said, “While physical suffering has been a common faith-building experience for many believers . . . it is not essential to spirituality.”* BUT . . . if you have ignored the ministry that God has called you to, then you should feel guilty! 

God’s “staffing” decisions are steeped in mystery. We don’t know why he chose Jeremiah to be the “weeping prophet” or why Moses was the only one qualified to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. Of all the young Jewish women in the world, was Mary really the only one who met all the qualifications? 

I have friends who have answered God’s call to go to mission fields in dangerous foreign countries – and they are happy to be there. And while we would never characterize Jeremiah as happy, we might say that he found fulfillment – and that he certainly would not have found happiness if he had refused to take God’s job offer. The same goes for you and me. “Bloom where you are planted,” may be a cliché, but it’s good advice – until God says, “Go.”

Suffering in the will of God is a ministry that God gives to a chosen few.*