“I say to myself, ‘The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.’”

Lamentations 3:24

Jeremiah walked faithfully with God. When others turned their back on God, Jeremiah embraced him. When others closed their ears to the voice of God, he listened. He was faithful when persecuted, true when tested; he was embarrassed and humiliated by those who opposed the ways of God, yet he remained steadfast. Though he grieved deeply for the sin of his people, he was unshaken in his commitment to follow the Lord. Yet he suffered. He suffered because of the sin of others. He was with his people as they fell under the wrath of God. As best we know Jeremiah was taken away into Egypt with his people. His life ended in exile, a captive there

What then was Jeremiah to do? How could he keep his soul intact when he suffered innocently when he received the consequences for others’ sins? Jeremiah went to a deeper well, a more sufficient provision for his soul. He went to the Lord. He found the satisfaction for his soul hunger in God, not in his circumstances.

Andrew Murray once wrote of our Lord: “You are the vine, I am the branch, it is enough, my soul is satisfied.” We find joy in many things in this life. God gives them to us freely to enjoy, yet there are moments when the external joys are removed and only the eternal remain. In these difficult moments, are we left without a satisfied heart? Jeremiah would answer, “no.” He would tell us that there is one who can still satiate the hungry heart. He would say, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.”

1. What sins of other people have derailed you from the life you would have preferred?
2. In what ways have these sins directed you to greater discoveries of God?
3. Are there sins of others that you need to entrust to God’s care today?

Prayer starter: Thank you that your sufficiency does not depend on the righteous acts of others.