Born Again? I Know I Am. But, But, But Why

"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. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart." Jeremiah 29:11-13

[This is the seventh part of this series and if you have started reading from the very beginning you shouldn't feel like you don't understand. Now if you do feel lost, then you are always welcome to go back and read any or all of the first six messages. Here are the links:

Born Again Series

Born Again? I Don't Get It!

Born Again? I'm Starting to Get It.

Born Again? I Get It!

Born Again? I Want It!

Born Again? I Believe I am. What's Next?

Born Again? I Believe I am. What Now?  (Two Part)


Prelude

I have been reading bible verses (daily) for the last 20 years. I have read countless times the short passage above found in the Book of Jeremiah. But it is only today that it dawned on me that here it was in God's Word -- you will call on Him, come to Him and pray to Him and He will listen. And when you seek Him with all your heart, you will find Him.

But before that it says: He has plans to prosper you, plans not to harm you. Give you hope. Give you a future.

And it would be like that for any believer.

Rereading the bible will give one fresh insight everytime, one can find something that wasn't there the previous times. The Word of God is living, He breathes life, He is active, He is working for anyone reading, for their own good. The Word of God is God.

Plans

From a previous message, we have learned that God has a plan for David, a future for him. It was the same for Abraham and other personalities written about in the bible.

They all knew about God's plan for them. And they all called upon Our Heavenly Father. Especially because they need to.

Seed

We know from a previous message in this series that our faith in our Creator starts like a little seed planted in our heart, a seed that will take some time to grow, mature and bear fruit.

In the same way, God also plants seeds of promises and plans for each one of us in our heart. The Holy Spirit, His Word, the testimonies (the personal stories) of other believers and our own testimony and experiences confirms these plans.

Trials

But these promises will not come to fruition without hitches. I can compare it to a rich relative who passes away and leaving you an inheritance, say an estate, a huge tract of land with a big house at a far away place you haven't been to yet.

So you fix up your car, pack your bags, put in the destination on the GPS and it gives you directions in real time towards your new home.

You know where you are headed but you aren't there yet. And the way towards it depends on the road conditions, weather conditions, other people on the road with you and many other factors. Your guide (the GPS navigation system) might from time to time change routes depending on what's happening. There might be road closures, detours, bumpy roads, potholes, slippery, or even hard to see the road conditions. It may be an unpleasant drive.

But because you are already holding on to your title deed then they push through.

New Believer's Life

In much the same way, a newly born again believer listens and follows the guidance of the Holy Spirit and God's Word. And they call upon God for any hiccup along the way.

Once again, we read...

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

Such is the life of the born again believer.