Recently I was reflecting again on this verse from Jeremiah 29:11 where the Lord reminds His people

Jer 29:11  ‘For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.’

This promise from the Lord was given to His people while they were in exile, held captivity in the land of Babylon.  They were in Babylon by the will of God.  They were there as God’s judgment for their generations of rebellion against Him.  And though they were experiencing the discipline and the judgment of the Lord, the Lord wanted His people to know that they had not been forgotten and abandoned.  God had plans to restore them to the land and to provide for their welfare and their future.  The Lord desired to give His people hope.

That is a good reminder for us as well.  There are many things that can hold us captive.  We may be in the grip of fear, doubt, grief or any other number of emotions.  We may be confined or constrained as a result of our actions or because of the actions of others.  We may be having to walk a path that we would not have chosen for ourselves.  In the midst of these difficult seasons, we can be assured that God has not forgotten us.  He still has plans for us – plans for our good and for our future that we might have hope!

I pray that you may know that God has not forgotten you.  I pray that you will be strengthened in the midst of whatever season you may be going through.  I pray that you will know that God has plans for you – plans for your well-being, plans for your future that you may have hope.