Before we Begin.....

Hello, dear friends.  Our Lenten journey begins.  Last week, a Zion friend emailed to say, "Are we going to read a book of the Bible again this year for Lent?"

And so began this new blog "Journey with Jeremiah."

Over the next 6 weeks, we will explore this Old Testament book together.

A warning: This is not an easy book of the Bible.  It is a very challenging, complicated book of the Old Testament.  It's the perfect kind of book to read in community with others.  It's the perfect kind of book to wrestle with!

Here on the blog, we will explore.  We will read.  We will ask questions and share reflections.  This space is open to all.  Hopefully the "comments" feature on this blog works easily - if you have any problems with it, please let me know.

There is one primary goal here: conversation.  The Bible is a tool for conversations.  Conversations with God.  Conversations with ourselves.  Conversations with others.

Before we begin with chapter 1, I thought it would be good to start out with some background on Jeremiah.  Here are a few tidbits....

• Jeremiah is an Old Testament book.  Jeremiah's ministry perhaps began somewhere around 625 BC.  
• The book spans more than 40 years.
• Jeremiah was a prophet - a spokesperson for God.
• Most of the time, Jeremiah's words for the people are very difficult and intense to hear.  He was not the kind of prophet that people liked very much.  
• Jeremiah warns the people again and again and again that bad things are going to happen because of their bad choices.
• The people Jeremiah speaks to are the "people of Judah."  They were followers of God who had made it through a variety of tough times (persecution, imprisonment, etc.), but they were headed for even more tough times. 
• Jeremiah and God have a VERY unique relationship.  God calls Jeremiah to be a prophet.  But Jeremiah is hesitant.  Throughout the book, there are times when Jeremiah really questions what God is doing.  
• The book has a definite tone of judgement and suffering. 

Knowing that Jeremiah is a challenging book to read, here's what I think we should be on the lookout for....

• Signs of God's grace - where do we see love displayed?  How about hope?
• Let's not be afraid to ask questions and even question what we read. 
• Remember, it's okay to read something from the Bible and say, "That is really strange."  Or "I disagree."  Or "That might have made sense then but I don't understand what it means now."  
• We are free to ask, What does the book mean for life today?  What doesn't it mean for life today?
• What can we learn from Jeremiah and his particular time in history?  

In addition to the assigned chapters for the day, I will also post other passages from the Bible on most days.  These will often be a verse or two of encouragement from the Psalms or the New Testament.  I think this will be a good way to keep us challenged and also encouraged.

Thanks for joining the journey!