Have you experienced a time of deep sorrow? Have you experienced the loss of a loved one? Have you experienced the unexpected loss of a job? Have you had a vehicle or a house repossessed? Have you been at a complete loss, not knowing where to turn for help?
Experiencing a time of deep sorrow, being overcome with grief, can be debilitating. We may become so depressed we can barely move. We walk around in a fog, unable to focus on anything. We may spend our day weeping. The depression may turn to anger.
When the Jews were taken captive by Babylon and Jerusalem was destroyed, they were distraught, in despair, grieving, feeling lost, facing an uncertain future, and feeling abandoned by God. The walls of protection around Jerusalem had been destroyed. The Babylon army had raided the city, destroying homes, indiscriminately killing, taking survivors captive, and force marching them for days.
The question that came to their mind over and over again was, “Why God?” Yet, they knew why. They had turned to idols. They had depended on their own wisdom. They had become proud of their accomplishments. They had conveniently forgotten that it was God who had blessed them.
We can learn a lesson from Judah and its exile. Rather than turning to our own strength, we must rely on God’s. Rather than worshiping possessions, we must worship God. Rather than relying on our own wisdom, we must seek God’s guidance. Rather than continue in our sin, we must repent of it, lament over it, and turn away from it. God stands with his arms wide open ready to welcome us back into the fold.
I pray we all learn a lesson from Judah’s exile. I pray we seek out God’s guidance in all we do. I pray each one of us repents of our sin and run into God’s awaiting arms to receive his forgiveness. Learn from Judah. Seek God’s guidance. Repent of your sin. Run to God’s open arms.
Psalm 137:1
By the rivers of Babylon—
there we sat down, and there we wept
when we remembered Zion.
Marty Pressey 