If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him! Luke 11:13.

Then I asked, “Who are you, Lord?” “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” the Lord replied. “Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen and will see of Me. I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.” Acts 26:15-18.

Do we truly realize, without the help of Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit, how hurtful sin is or that the pain from sin goes deep? How can that be healed without understanding? Our chapter, Jeremiah 46 and the chapters through the final chapter 52, are prophecies against the nations. Just as Jerusalem received its punishment, so will the nations. This chapter is about Egypt. “Who is this that rises like the Nile, like rivers of surging waters? Egypt rises like the Nile, like rivers of surging waters. She says, ‘I will rise and cover the earth; I will destroy cities and their people.’ Charge, you horses! Drive furiously, you charioteers! March on, you warriors – men of Cush and Put who carry shields, men of Lydia who draw the bow. But that day belongs to the Lord, the Almighty – a day of vengeance, for vengeance on His foes. The sword will devour till it is satisfied, till it has quenched its thirst with blood. For the Lord, the Lord Almighty, will offer sacrifice in the land of the north by the River Euphrates…I am about to bring punishment on Amon god of Thebes, on Pharaoh, on Egypt and her gods and her kings, and on those who rely on Pharaoh. I will give them into the hands of those who want to kill them – Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and his officers. Later, however, Egypt will be inhabited as in times past,” declares the Lord. “Do not be afraid, Jacob My servant; do not be dismayed, Israel. I will surely save you out of a distant place, your descendants from the land of their exile. Jacob will again have peace and security, and no one will make him afraid. Do not be afraid, Jacob, My servant, for I am with you,” declares the Lord. “Though I completely destroy all the nations among which I scatter you, I will not completely destroy you. I will discipline you but only in due measure; I will not let you go entirely unpunished.” v. 7-10, 25-28.

We have this fear of “God’s punishment”. What about the punishment humans inflict upon one another? War, hate, rape of adults and children, mass shootings, drug addictions and the violence of the drug cartels to bring those drugs, church hurt, religious persecution, the list goes on and on. What about the pain we give to God? Idolatry, lying, stealing, murdering, greed, the list goes on. And there is one place where all of that hurt can be healed with understanding. When we choose to seek God, we begin to see a difference. And the closer we come to God and His truth for us, the starker that difference becomes. In this world it’s not easy to come to God for fear of more hurt and more deception. God understands. And when you come to that place where nothing but the truth will work, ask. Ask Creator God to help. Give to Him your pain, your questions, your need to understand what cannot be understood without Him. And then listen. Open your heart to receive something new. Creator God’s abiding love for you. And there’s more! Take His hand. Begin your journey with God who loves you and will teach you and help you to grasp truth so beautiful it won’t be contained…it will be shared!