Building in Babylon

There’s a story in the book of Jeremiah that we talk little about.  Yet, in it you will find one of the most well known verses in the Bible.  

Chapter 29 begins with the prophet writing a letter to the people of Jerusalem who had been captured and taken to Babylon.  I can only imagine what being exiled to a foreign land must feel like.  The changes in culture and language.  The loss of home and family and freedom.  

How scared they must have been.

I wonder at the excitement they must have felt when news of the letters arrival spread throughout their community.  I can actually feel the hope that must have coursed through their veins with the expectation of deliverance that was most certainly spelled out in the pages they now held.

Surely, this captivity was about to end!  Soon they would be set free from this bondage and back to the very thing they longed for… home!  

To life as it was... before.

I can imagine the scenarios that played through their minds as they began to open the letter.  Was there a secret plan in place?  Had Jeremiah come up with a way to help them escape?  Was he even now just outside those city gates preparing to set them free?

And how their hearts must have broken when they saw those first words, “This is what the Lord says.. ‘Build homes, and plan to stay.’”

Plan to stay?

No!! 

Just reading these words thousands of years later brings tears to my eyes.

Build homes? 

Here? 

In Babylon?

The letter goes on to encourage the exiled people to not only build homes but to plant gardens… get married… have children… and then have them marry!  

Wait.. what?

“We’re gonna be here that long?!?”

As Christians today, we focus so often on being set free from bondage.  And, yes, there are many bondages we should seek to be free from.

But we cannot deny that there are situations in our lives that we cannot change.  We cannot avoid. And we cannot escape.

Which begs the questions - what does your Babylon look like?

The death of a dream?  A marriage?  A loved one?

Loss of health? Home? Finances?  

Or can it be summed up by simply saying “COVID-19”?

Babylon is that place we land unwillingly and with no desire to stay.  And to open our minds to the idea of putting down roots and learning to live… no… even thrive in Babylon is offensive to our senses.

I shared this concept with a group of teens recently.  Many of them are living in the Babylon of broken homes.  It is not of their choosing - yet they have no other option.  Their current condition is based on the choices of others.  

And they must reap the consequences.

I challenged them to look even further into Jeremiah 29.  In verse 7, the people are told to “work for the peace and prosperity of Babylon.  Pray for it.  For its welfare will determine your welfare.”

What??

Pray for the peace and prosperity of my Babylon?

No!

I don’t want to live here!  

I. want. to. go. home.

Back to before.

Back to normal.

We can wail and scream and cry.  Search for a means of escape… ignore the obvious… and attack those around us.

But when you’re in Babylon… you’re in Babylon.

At the moment when their hearts couldn’t have sank deeper into their chests, hope appeared on the pages of that letter.

Yes, they were stuck in Babylon.  Yes, they were asked to accept their reality and learn to live with it.  

A hard ask. 

But then the Lord gave those beautiful words we love to claim without acknowledging those earlier sentences… He said, “I know the plans I have for you.  They are plans for good and not for disaster.  Plans to give you a hope and a future.”

He goes on to invite His people to search for Him wholeheartedly with the promise to end their captivity and restore their fortunes - but it wouldn’t happen for seventy years.  

Life had changed.  And it would never look the same for them again.

Sound familiar?

I asked earlier what your Babylon looks like.

How long have you been there?

How hard has it been?

Does the thought of staying offend your senses?

I get it.  I do.

And while your Babylon might look different than mine, I invite you to link arms and join me in praying for the peace and prosperity of our individual Babylons even as we shake the dust off our weary hearts and begin searching for ways to build a life inside our situations.

Take comfort in knowing that God knew where to find the exiled people - after all, the letter reached them even though they were far from home.  He knows where to find you as well.

When we stop searching for a way to escape Babylon, it is then we can pick up a hammer and begin building a new life inside the wrong side of the walls we so despise.

It may not be where you’d choose to be… but if that’s where you are, I hope you will find courage to rise up, build, plant roots and thrive - even in Babylon.

Through Waters Deep

I realized I had been continually trying to live in my own strength.  Sort of like trying to move forward, while at the same time not letting go of the past…  I was grieving for my old life.

I liked my long, albeit sometimes frizzy, hair.  I liked being fit and knowing what worked for my body…and not having to worry about surgery and who would be bringing meals or taking care of my son.

It hurts.

I miss it.

I long to go back to the days before cancer ever entered into my medical portfolio.

-Erin Shafer, Through Waters Deep

I met Erin several years ago… before her battle with cancer.  I remember the day I heard of her diagnosis…and the feeling of shock and worry about one so young receiving that news.

Yes, I know that cancer happens at any age – but breast cancer isn’t supposed to affect my friends, right?  After all, my peers and I were still in the carefree zone.  The self-check-if-you-think-about-it zone.  The seven-years-before-I-have-to-schedule-a-mammogram zone.

Breast cancer couldn’t be found on my list of things to worry about – at least, in my case, it wasn’t anywhere near the top.  But cancer is no respecter of persons – and this, my friend Erin, found to be true.

Her book, Through Waters Deep, is a candid version of her experiences before, during and after the cancer verdict.  

I attended a women’s conference where Erin was the speaker.  I sat there listening to her, amazed by her ability to find joy in spite of how much her life has changed.  It was nothing short of inspiring.  I realized in a greater capacity how much I take my health for granted… and I was humbled.  

More than that, I was encouraged by Erin's view of life now.  While she may grieve the loss of who she once was, she has found a way to embrace the life she has today.  A life that is different, yes, but a life worth living nonetheless.  A life with so much to offer this world.

If you have lived with cancer, you’ll understand Erin’s journey all the more, but either way, I can assure you that you’ll find encouragement inside the pages of this book.

If you're looking for an inspiring story, may I suggest hers?  You can order your own copy of Erin’s book here.

Erin is a pastor's wife, mother of two (she has a beautiful story of adoption to share), blogger and American Cancer Society advocate.  You can follow more of Erin through her blog 'Beyond the Backyardigans' and on Facebook. 

GIVEAWAY NOTICE!  

Would you'd like to win my personal copy of Erin's book, Through Waters Deep?  

Only two steps to enter:

1. Copy and share this link: http://www.lynettecarpenter.com/2016/01/through-waters-deep.html via any social media site or on your own blog

2. Email me here with SHARED in the subject line

Giveaway winner will be announced Saturday, January 16th!

Lynette Carpenter is available for interviews and appearances. For booking presentations, media appearances, interviews, and/or book-signings contact lynettecarpenter@yahoo.com.

The Privilege of Serving

What does your day hold?  What duties lie before you?

As a mother, I see endless need-to-dos overshadowing my want-to-dos… but somewhere inside all the demands, my attitude changes when I recognize the high calling - the honor - the privilege I've been given in being called to serve my family – and those around me.

To SERVE isn't something our society promotes.  It isn't something most dream of growing up to be – ‘one who serves’.  It isn't even something we think of in connection with the concept of parenting...or marriage (ouch).

It's backwards thinking...to lower oneself... to seek to serve...’more of you, less of me’.

It’s counter-cultural.

But then so was Jesus.

And I find that when I yield myself to Him, He changes my perspective.  And suddenly, the thankless, endless and unnoticed become my calling…my joy… and my privilege.

You see, Satan wants me to give up.  He tells me all my efforts are in vain – not just with mothering… but in relationships…in ministry…in everything. 

But my Abba tells me not to listen to the lies.  He calls out – telling me to hang in there – that I have no idea what each small seed will produce…and that while it may not seem this way today, someday I’ll look back and recognize the privilege that is mine in being invited to SERVE the ones before me.