Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7

OK, so you have never heard of the Hananiah Syndrome (I just made it up) but I am sure you have experienced its effects.  Hananiah was one of those “false prophets” who told the exiles in Babylon that they would return soon to their homeland, to comfort and happiness, and be gone from this God-forsaken wasteland of an exile.  Jeremiah, on the other hand, told them you need to live where you are, plant gardens, build homes, and raise families here, where you are, not back there where you think you want to be.

I choose Hananiah!  He sounds so much nicer, so much more 2016 when we do all we can to stay out of places like Babylon.   Jeremiah has the nerve to confront my complaining, and burst a few wistful dreams, telling me that no one can live where they aren’t, that the only day we have to live is this one, that the only place we live is the place where are feet are planted.  The nerve of the man!

Begrudgingly I have to admit he makes sense, or to be more correct, God makes sense (prophets, of course, only speak for God, not themselves).  And did you notice what God said?  That God sent them into exile in the first place so we might learn an important lesson.  Babylon, the place of our distress and turmoil and all things not right, becomes a home when we want it to be, when we plant seeds and build homes and treat our enemies as neighbors and consider the place we are standing as holy ground.  Sorry Hananiah.