I will keep my eyes on them for their good and will return them to this land. I will build them up and not demolish them; I will plant them and not uproot them. I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am Yahweh. They will be my people and I will be their God because they will return to Me with all their heart.     Jeremiah 24:6-7 HCSB

One reason I am such a fan of the Old Testament is because it shows us that people who remain faithful when there is evil all around them have great success. Noah was faithful even though the world had become so evil God had decided to destroy it by the flood. Noah and his family were the only people who were spared (Genesis 6).

Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers. He was given favor by God in all situations and eventually became second in command in all of Egypt. He told his brothers that what they meant for harm God had planned for good (Genesis 50:20).

In our Scripture passage today, God is telling Jeremiah to speak this parable of figs to the people. He is telling them that those who remain faithful to Him will be like the good figs. God will protect them and help them to thrive during their Babylonian captivity. He will bring them home to Jerusalem after their captivity and they will return to God wholeheartedly.

We see this with many of the captives such as Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the book of Daniel. We see this with Esther and Mordecai in the book of Esther and Nehemiah and others in the book of Nehemiah. These people remained faithful to God in difficult times and God protected them and took care of them even in these horrific circumstances.

In Matthew 6:33 we are told to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all other things will be added to us. When we put God first, He takes care of all we need. This angers the devil, and He wants us to sin and be distracted from serving God.

Our focus should never be on our circumstances, God will handle our circumstances. Our focus should be on God. No matter how bleak things may appear to be if we are loving the Lord with all our heart and serving Him, He will work it out for our good (Romans 8:28).

We have a job to do. We are to love the Lord with all our heart and acknowledge Him in all we do (Proverbs 3:5-6). God’s job is to take good care of us. He will do this if we stay focused on Him, accept Him as our Savior, love Him, and do what He has called us to do.

He will straighten out our crooked paths (Proverbs 3:6). He will protect us (Psalm 91). He will provide for us (Matthew 6:33).

If you are focusing on your circumstances, please know that your focus is way off. God will take care of your circumstances if you just take care of what He wants you to take care of.

Most importantly, know that if you are facing difficult times, God’s got this. The devil wants you to focus on these difficult times, but you would do best to focus on God. Don’t let your circumstances distract you from loving Him with all your heart. Don’t let them distract you from serving Him.

Trust in God to take good care of you. Trust in Him to walk you through the fire and the flood (Isaiah 43:2).

Don’t focus on your circumstances, focus on God and trust Him to take care of your circumstances. Acknowledge Him in all you do and trust Him to guide you along the right paths. Know that even from great tragedy, He can bring you great success.

Have a great day!