Jeremiah 29:11

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

Do you know this verse?   I know it better than the back of my hand, the contents of my closet, the inside of my spice cabinet (which isn't very well, admittedly, given that I found two bottles of ground ginger the other day, as I was putting away the ground ginger).  

My mom gave me this verse in the way that the Old Testament patriarchs handed out blessings.  She had it done in needle-point for my first-born child and then framed in posters that have hung over the doorways in all three boys' rooms in every single house we have occupied.  She quoted it in times of trouble, at my many crossroads, in moments of uncertainty and on the occasion of new beginnings.

Far from becoming immune to this often-repeated promise, it moves my heart even now.  My God has plans for me!  Good plans.  Hopeful plans.

How awesome is that?  

Psalms 8:4 says, What is man that You take thought of him, And the son of man that You care for him?

Somewhere along my way, I actually opened my Bible to Jeremiah and read the verse I know by heart.  I remember being shocked at what follows the promise that was given to me (and to you!):

¹²Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. ¹³ You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

In the context of the time that God gave this word to Jeremiah, this is God speaking to His people, the Israelites, who were in bondage in Babylon.  They were in bondage because they had turned away from their God.

In the context of my life, present day, this means that God wants to bless me, has a plan for my life, but above all wants a relationship with me.  I think it's a mistake to think that the promise of Jeremiah 29:11 is a freebie.  Living in God's blessings requires that I be in relationship with God.  I get (and stay) in relationship with God by seeking Him.  (You, too!)

The with all of my heart part?  With that, I need to ask for help.  I don't really even know what it means, to be honest.  I won't let that stop me from asking though.  I hope you won't, either.