A life turned inward leads to being “stuck in a rut”.
Jeremiah 38:6-13 (ESV)
6 So they took Jeremiah and cast him into the cistern of Malchiah, the king’s son, which was in the court of the guard, letting Jeremiah down by ropes. And there was no water in the cistern, but only mud, and Jeremiah sank in the mud. 7 When Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, a eunuch who was in the king’s house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the cistern-the king was sitting in the Benjamin Gate- 8 Ebed-melech went from the king’s house and said to the king, 9 “My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they did to Jeremiah by casting him into the cistern and he will die of hunger, for there is no bread left in the city.” 10 Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, “Take thirty men with you from here, and lift Jeremiah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies.” 11 So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to the house of the king, to a wardrobe in the storehouse, and took from there old rags and worn-out clothes, which he let down to Jeremiah in the cistern by ropes. 12 Then Ebed-melech said to Jeremiah, “Put the rags and clothes between your armpits and the ropes.” Jeremiah did so. 13 Then they drew Jeremiah up with ropes and lifted him out of the cistern. And Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.
A life turned inward leads to being “stuck in a rut”. Jeremiah and Ebed-melech are both stuck. Jeremiah is stuck in mud and Ebed-melech is stuck in a daily routine. Are you like Ebed-melech, stuck in a title, man-made limitations, or hopes that are quickly sinking in dead-end situations? Ebed-melech is a eunuch assigned to the royal palace. He represents the life of being unfulfilled, unproductive, and restricted. In this position he has taken on the dynamic of a system that owns him and has rendered him absent of emotion without any opinion regarding his future.
STUCK IN NEUTRAL
Gears shift in your life once you become like Ebed-melech and recognize that one person’s impossibilities are your opportunities. Seizing the moment of opportunity is the clutch to moving forward. Taking advantage of opportunities saves lives and preserves futures. Change the route of your perspective and make a hard detour from the normality of your life that keeps you reaching inward to only satisfy the hard press that you are currently experiencing. There is an opportunity within you to satisfy the impossibility that another person is sinking in. The mud that Jeremiah sank in represented mixed emotions, false opinions, and lies. Dirt and water independent of themselves are necessary elements in the earth but mixed together they create a sloppy mess.
RESCUE MISSION
He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure -Psalm 40:2
Quick action is required to move from stuck to significant. Ebed-melech heard that Jeremiah the prophet was stuck, and he immediately engaged with a strategy. First, he accessed a resource that could help supply him with what he needed to execute Jeremiah’s rescue. No longer waste time battering your self-esteem with resources that do not have capacity to create inroads to your destiny. Stagnation comes when you subject yourself to communities and people who do not have a map for your future. The most important thing in a rescue mission is understanding what tools to use. The king gave Ebed-melech total access to his storehouse. Ebed-melech was able to look beyond the noise of the treasures of gold, silver, and fine linens to locate the resource that was needed. Out of the king’s treasure, the eunuch came out with old rags and worn clothes. You may be stagnant and stuck because of overlooking old rags and worn clothes in your life. You have said that you have nothing, but in reality, you have everything! On the other side of the coin, can God trust you to be a faithful steward to use wisely and purposefully what He has provided you access to.
In this hour we will begin to see a greater uncovering of corrupt political structures AND unholy religious figures. Some of the Kingdom Initiatives that need to be under girded are health, wealth, cultural diversity, righteousness & holiness, worship, 5-fold ministry advancement and political structures on all levels. Look for the pop culture to become even more risqué and vulgar.
PROPHETIC INSTRUCTION
Can you take instructions? Jeremiah had to take instructions from a least likely candidate. Jeremiah was thrown in a cistern and left to die. He was sinking in mud with no way out and there was a famine in the land. Jeremiah’s future was either drown in mud or die from famine. For him to be released from his muddy prison he had to trust the instructions of the one that God sent him! Because he followed the instructions and did not question who was giving the instructions. He did not question why he had to use old rags and worn out clothes to protect a sensitive place in his life. He followed the instructions. How many times have you refused deliverance because you considered God’s way of delivering you beneath your expectations and standards?
Beloved you may feel be like Jeremiah, sinking in the opinions of man, internal frustration, and life’s unpredictable tragedies, but there is opportunity in the midst of these impossibilities. God can and will deliver you from the deepest pits of despair.