“When the people return to their homeland, they will remove every trace of their vile images and detestable idols. And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them. I will take away their stony, stubborn heart and give them a tender, responsive heart, so they will obey my decrees and regulations. Then they will truly be my people, and I will be their God. “ 11:16-20

God still has a plan for Israel! He will bring them back to their homeland, he will take the sin and idols out of their line of sight and he will give them new hearts.

Pause a moment and think of something you imagine as hopeless. Maybe something within yourself, maybe a condition of something in your life, maybe a friend you know. Is it a relationship you have, with a significant other or family member? The condition of the country you live in? The government you’re under. Maybe it’s an addiction you’re battling, or one you’re watching someone battling and losing.

The God of the Israelites is our God too. He can peel off our gripped fingers around our idols and throw them to the side. He can soften the hardest heart. He can breathe life into the lifeless. He can humble the most prideful spirit.

They will truly be my people, and I will be their God.

What do you need to surrender to God?

Maybe it’s an idol of fear and safety. An idol of bitterness and hurt. Sometimes we unintentionally worship the things we hate, just simply because we’re fixated on them and don’t know how to surrender them.

Hand them to Jesus, whose yoke is easy and burden is light (Matthew 11:30).

-Carly