"This is what the Lord says: ‘You say about this place, 'it is a desolate waste, without people or animals.'

Yet in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are deserted,

inhabited by neither people nor animals, there will be heard once more."...

-Jeremiah 33:10 (NIV)

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 This year may have brought news that you did not want to hear. Those words from that person whom you loved may have ended the relationship. That response from your supervisor may have brought news that you were now without a job. Those results from the doctor may have told you that there is no cure or that the tests came back inconclusive. That letter from the bank may have said that you're not approved. The financial aid office may have told you that your tuition was not covered. The letter from that college that you really wanted to attend may have apologetically let you know that you were not accepted. You may have told yourself that you were not worthy. You may have told yourself that you are not capable. Well, there is "GOOD NEWS". In this coming year, GOD IS GOING TO CHANGE THE SOUND!

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In our scripture highlight we find that due to the sins of the people, as a consequence, Judah and Jerusalem were to become a desolate waste. There would come a time when there would be no people or animals in the city. The sins of the people had separated them from God. Their sins had caused them to be taken under siege. But because of the grace and mercy that God has and because of His love and compassion for the people, He promised to restore both the towns, the people, and everything in it. However, God wanted the people to call upon Him, to seek Him, to turn from their wickedness, and to go after Him with their FULL HEARTS.

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If we read chapters 29-33 of the book of Jeremiah, we find that God had become tired and angered by the inability of Israel and Judah to obey Him. He had become angered by their constant wickedness and evil behaviors. He had grown tired of their idolatry and their disregarding His commands. We find that God uses Jeremiah to prophesy to the people. We find that God warns the people what the consequences for their disobedience will be. We find that the towns of Judah and the people of Jerusalem will be sieged and as they await this destruction to come to past, God makes them a promise through the message of hope that He sent through Jeremiah. God promises to restore the cities to what they once were. He promises to change those sounds of fear, mourning, and trembling into sounds of joy and gladness and to once again reside in the midst of the people.

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God promised to forgive Israel and Judah and wash away all of their sins. God promised to reestablish and prosper them. All the people would see His glory by how He would renew what was once broken, desolate, and destroyed. Jeremiah prophesied that the people would be captured and taken into exile but what is so profound and speaks to the true character of God is the fact that although God promised to punish them for their sins, He also promises that He wouldn't completely destroy them but would however, completely destroy all who came against them.

 

Although God would punish them and they would receive judgment for their sins, God would still keep them. And although God would turn His face from them, He promised to still fight for them when the time came. God would eventually bring both Judah and Israel out of their captivity. God would change the sound of a land that once trembled in fear, pain, anguish, and despair and fill the land with sounds of joy and gladness.

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Due to their sins, Israel and Judah found themselves in a place of wrath and judgment from God. Aside from the disasters that we bring upon ourselves. Aside from us finding ourselves in unfortunate situations due to our own hard-headedness. Aside from us not exercising proper judgment and suffering the consequences of such, many of us can sometimes find ourselves in a similar place due to no fault of our own, in which it seems that God is simply not there. A place in which it seems that God has stripped everything away from us and deserted us. A place in which no matter how long or how hard we cry out to Him, there is no answer. And if this is where you currently find yourself, take heart, because THERE IS HOPE!

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If God saw fit to have mercy and compassion on the children of Israel and Judah, if God saw fit to restore them and bring them back to a place of renewal, do you not think that God would do the same for you? However, you must "take heart" and wait.

 

                                   "Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord." -Psalm 27:14 (NIV)

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In many of our blogs this year, we have reflected on faith and how our lack of patience and our inability to wait causes us to not trust God in the way that we should. Here it is, God forewarning Israel and Judah of their destruction yet promising to bring them out of the very captivity that He will allow them to be taken into and then turn around and both renew, defend, and prosper them. Here it is, God giving the people this message so that they would have hope and turn to Him. He gave the people this message of hope to encourage their hearts and let them know that He would save them. However, for many of them, this was not enough. Regardless of what God said or what God did for them, as we continue to read the books to follow starting from Jeremiah up to Malachi, we find that the people struggled to trust God, His words, and His promises.

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How about you? What has God promised you, but because 'the wait' seems larger than life itself, you are struggling to "take heart" and simply wait?  

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Simply? Simply seems DIFFICULT when you think you NEED what you NEED when you WANT IT!

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If we learn nothing else about God as it concerns the children of Israel, we learn that God keeps His promises. The truth is that when we feel like our backs are against the wall and disappointment has become our shadow, the idea of a "promise" does not appease our flesh in a way that speaks to our hearts, soothes our worry or removes our doubt. When we are only focusing on what surrounds us, a promise can seem like what many may call "a hoop dream". While it is very natural to feel this way concerning the promises of 'man', we must condition ourselves to remove this kind of thinking as it concerns our dependability on God.

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"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,' declares the Lord." -Isaiah 55:8 (NIV).

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If we can do ourselves a favor and let Isaiah 55:8 really sink into our hearts, it will lessen the stress and aggravation we cause ourselves trying to figure it out on our own. It will lessen the  annoyance and frustration of thinking that God is a procrastinator. One of our biggest issues is that we think that "GOD TAKES TOO LONG!" And in all honesty, it sometimes does take a while for us to see the fulfillment of what He promised. The truth is that sometimes the delivery of what He promised does not come 'priority mail' or 'overnight shipping', but it does come GUARANTEED.

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Here's what we have to understand. God orchestrates things. He does not simply throw something together and give it to us, but He is a craftsman. And because He is a craftsman, all the things "THAT HE GIVES US" are by design, which means that they are not all going to "POOF!, there it is".

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God will never do anything for the sake of doing it. Everything He does is with purpose. Everything He does is perfect. Everything He does is just. Everything He does is fair. Everything He does has merit. Everything He does is flawless. Therefore, many of the promises that He makes to us are going to take time. Not because He does not have the power to make it happen instantly, because He does. But it takes time because sometimes He has to prepare us for what He promised us. And at other times He may have to prepare the people that are connected to what He has promised us. At times He may have to allow the places, environments, and surroundings that are attached to our promise to be at a particular point, level, or position before we step into what He has promised us. In other words, things must be ALIGNED!

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Our God is not a man that is out of order or creates chaos. Therefore, He does all things in alignment so that nothing is out of place. And yep, I know, telling you all of this is still not making you feel any better about the fact that things "TAKE TOO LONG" and the truth is that it's not supposed to. It is mentioned just to make you realize that the wait has purpose and it is up to you to decide whether or not you'll accept that as truth or keep tap dancing on your own nerves and throwing self-tantrums because "YOU WANT IT NOW!" We must trust that God will hear our cry.

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We spent all of October through December planning and preparing and shopping, and cooking, and doing all those things that we do in order to prepare for the holiday season. We spent so much money buying inflatable nativity scenes and buying Christmas cards with that known picture of a baby in a manger. We enthusiastically talked about how much of a gift the birth of that precious baby boy was and how much HOPE he brought to the world, only to find ourselves in despair on December 26, because reality has kicked back in making us realize that our talk of the "Joy of Jesus" was more of a tagline than it was something that we allowed to truly resonate in us beyond the holiday season.

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Many of us have already decided how we're going to bring in the new year and picked out an outfit for the festivities. Many of us have already ordered platters of 'some of this' and 'some of that' because we've decided to have a quiet "bringing in the new year" at home with our family and closest friends. Many of us have already prepared to "watch the ball drop". Many of us have party hats and whistles ready for when the clock strikes twelve, so that we can CELEBRATE another year. In other words, many of us have already stopped celebrating the birth of the JESUS that we proclaimed meant more than anything to focus on the next holiday that lies ahead.

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There are some who already have all those New Year's resolutions written out, those resolutions that halfway through the year, they will find  buried under a stack of other things that they were supposed to do and have decided to save them for the next year because 'life is being life" and there is no time to focus on anything that's not going to help free them from their current mess. Beyond that, there are already some who are preparing for Valentine's trips and making summer break plans. And there is nothing at all wrong with that, Enjoy! But if you want to hear "the new sound" that God will bring you this current year, YOU MUST STAY CONNECTED WITH HIM! No matter what season we are in or what holiday we are celebrating, hold on to Christ as our Hope!

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What we must realize is that, the "Good News" that the angels shared with the shepherds of the birth of the Savior is still relevant and if we want to go throughout this current year allowing ourselves to be less depressed, less disappointed, less fearful, less worried, and less hopeless, we must realize that GOD IS STILL ALIVE and JESUS STILL REIGNS, so THERE WILL ALWAYS BE HOPE! And as long as there is HOPE and we are able to fully trust God, we have the promise of this "NEW SOUND".

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No matter what this coming year may bring us, GOD PROMISES to "make it right"! Because God loves us, HE WILL ALWAYS COME THROUGH, we just have to BE PATIENT and TRUST THAT HE KNOWS! Even when we mess up God promises to forgive us and restore us. Even when God allows things to test us as He did Job, God promises to restore us. Even when everyone leaves our side and turns their back on us and we are left empty, God promises to restore us.

 

                             "Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me." -John 14:1 (NIV)

 

​It is impossible for any of us to face this coming year and go throughout the entire year without a trial, test, or unwanted circumstance of some kind. We are going to have things that we JUST WANT TO GO AWAY. However, some of those things won't go anywhere and the only way to overcome them is going to be to FULLY TRUST GOD! The only way to overcome whatever we face this current year is to remember that CHRIST BROUGHT US HOPE!

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In the book of Jeremiah, we find something that is easy to miss. Jeremiah 23:6 reads:

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"In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord Our Righteous Savior" (NIV).

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Jeremiah 33:16 then reads:

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"In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. This is the name by which it will be called: The Lord Our Righteous Savior" (NIV).

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God promises to restore Judah and Jerusalem and one of the ways in which He would do this is through JESUS! Jeremiah 23:6 speaks of "The Lord Our Righteous Savior" which through him both Judah and Israel will be safe and secure.

 

In chapter 23, this verse is referring to Jesus as the Messiah. In chapter 33, this verse refers to Jerusalem.

 

Because of the coming of Christ to intercede on their behalf, Jerusalem's restoration and new identity would rest in Christ. Through Christ all who believe in him and receive salvation and abide by His word would be able to be called, "RIGHTEOUS"! This was not only true for Judah and Jerusalem but for all who would receive salvation through him. This was not only true for the people that lived during his time, but that same TRUTH REMAINS EVEN NOW!

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We have to try our best as difficult as it may be to not allow our hearts to become anguished because just as God fulfills His promises, we must realize that Jesus is the promise. JESUS IS THE ULTIMATE PROMISE in which everything that God has promised us both in His Word and in our hearts now rests in. We receive our blessings and our inheritance through our Savior, Jesus Christ.

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Life is going to cause some pain. Life is going to cause some tears. BUT WE HAVE AN EVERLASTING HOPE that took scars so that no matter what we may face, we will always have the promise of restoration. We will always have the promise of redemption. We will always have the promise of JOY. We will always have the promise of PEACE! We will always have the promise of safety knowing that just like God promised in His Word, "no weapon formed against us shall prosper". We will always have the promise of Hope on our side! And it is for these reasons that we will always have the promise of "A NEW SOUND"!

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What is it that your heart is waiting to hear? What have you been longing for? What have you been praying for? What have you been sowing for? What have you been seeking God for? What has been keeping you up at night? What has been troubling your spirit? What has been making it hard for you to keep your faith?

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Whatever it is, TAKE HEART because God will BRING A NEW SOUND! Whatever it is YOU WANT TO HEAR FROM God, TRY HIM! STAND TO GOD"S FACE AND TELL HIM WHAT YOU WANT and do SOMETHING RADICAL IN 2026. HOLD ON TO HIM UNTIL YOU HEAR THAT NEW SOUND!

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GOD NEVER FAILS! GOD NEVER STOPS WORKING! GOD ALWAYS KEEPS HIS PROMISES. Therefore, AWAIT THE SOUND! IT MIGHT BE HARD, BUT AWAIT THE SOUND! You might feel like you are going to fall apart BUT AWAIT THE SOUND! BELIEVE AND LET 2026 BE THE YEAR OF A NEW SOUND!