I continue to search. What does it look like? How should I live my life in the space of unknowing and uncertainty? What should my posture be as I interact with and attempt to love those around me? I resonate with the idea of living in exile. Exile looks like questions that are unanswered, lives that are muddied by the grey of searching and finding no place to rest in the process. Exile is wandering – aimless and directionless. Exile is a place of in-between. Jeremiah writes a letter to those living in exile. The letter is a word from God to a people who have nothing; uprooted from their homes and a life of certainty and predictability. I am intrigued by God’s advice on how to live. It’s not what I expected it to be. Instead of a forward looking plan of action, God tells the people to make the most of where they’re at. He tells them to plant gardens and eat the food that they produce. They are to build houses and have families. They are encouraged to settle down. This seems like a plan that has longevity. One that points to purpose and intention. Even in exile. Jeremiah writes further that in all of this, it is imperative that the people seek peace. Shalom. A place for the heart to rest and offer rest to others. It’s an up-side-down way of thinking in a world that so quickly seeks to find quick answers and resolution. Instead, live in the tension. Thrive. Plant a garden; start a family. Be shalom in that place. Rest in a God who’s OK about the in-between. Even in exile.
Jeremiah 29:1-7