I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear me and that all will then go well for them and for their children after them. I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me, so that they will never turn away from me. – Jeremiah 32:39-40
I am currently reading through Jeremiah and it feels as if it is my first time. While there is plenty that stands out to me, what I want to share now is the verse above. God’s people had turned from Him to foreign gods, and Jeremiah was to prophesy pending judgment in hopes they would repent and turn from their ways. God’s people were fickle and reading through the Old Testament you see them vacillating on whether they were going to follow God.
In the midst of Jeremiah’s prophesies, he describes a day where God would give His people a singleness of heart and action to never turn away from Him. This is the day we are in.
However, as Christians we still seem fickle about our devotion to follow God. We may never turn to Asherah poles or bowing down to Baal, but we keep turning persistent sins and trusting in our own understanding.
How do we get this steadfastness of heart and mind that Jeremiah predicted?
We are to appropriate it. We need to ask God for what He wants to give and believe He has given it to us. We should declare it over over our lives each day until we never doubt that it is true.
I have been given a pure heart. I will choose God throughout my day. My old nature is DEAD, but I am ALIVE in the spirit. I cannot help but follow after God. I have the mind of Christ. I can hear and know God’s will in every situation.
The victorious life over sin is the normal Christian life. I will not give sin a second thought. I choose to allow my mind to dwell on things in heaven. I choose life in my mind, heart, and actions. I will only find my heart’s desire by choosing God’s ways. Today I will live every moment in God’s will.
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. … Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. – Psalm 51:10,12
Daily seeking God allows us to better die to our own desires. This is why it’s so important to daily read the Bible, pray, and worship. So we are in close connection with Him. Great post!