What to Remember When You Hit Bottom, Part 2

Visionary leaders are able to peer into the future and forecast what you have. Throughout history, God raised up powerful prophets who warned people of looming danger. Jeremiah was like that he saw destruction coming of the Israelites didn't listen and soon the Babylonians ransacked Jerusalem, and sent the people in the exile, today on Insight for living.

Chuck Swindoll continues to study and Lamentations chapter 3. In this time sensitive message Chuck sees a clear connection between Israel's plight of our world today. He titled his message what to remember when you hit bottom.

Begin with prayer. Help us to learn to stop our father even in the rush of things. Even as events unfolded, teach us the power of momentary stopping and entertaining the silence of the moment and absorbing the reminders that you are God and we are not you are in charge.

You are in control and we are neither you are our God, and in that there is great comfort.

There is a resurgence of hope there is a renewal of inner peace. Help us to stop and learn again that you alone are our God to be afraid and entertain alien thoughts when we would panic and run trying to escape. Stop us slower pace reminders so the great benefit waiting on you. There are some today who wait in pain.

We remember them.

Our hearts go out to them.

Some are in deep grief, having lost an individual who meant much to them. We pray for them that you would bring comfort and wonderful reminders that there is a home beyond this one that is fairer than day by faith, we can see it far and there are some dreadfully worried because of the preoccupation with the world around us and the devastation were witnessing bring back to us. The reminder that it is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because your compassions fail not. They are new every sunrise. Thank you for the privilege of worship we do so with confidence that you will minister to us and then through us to others as we absorb truth to live by, through which we make wise decisions and measure our words and speak with kindness and forgive often make even these moments meaningful as we pause to let the wonder, for Jesus sake. I pray everyone said amen to search the Scriptures with Chuck Swindoll. Be sure to download it, searching the Scriptures. Studies by going to Insight world.org/studies another message titled what to remember when you hit bottom. Jeremiah held forth faithfully as a man of God speaking to people who didn't want to hear what he had to say and they told him so. They resented him they rejected him. They even imprison him on occasion they shoved him aside, they pushed him back. They ignored his message. He told them with warning you're heading for devastation. Our city will fall the end of he is preparing these coming they wanted nothing to do with his message they want to listen to false prophets and think preacher foamy priests who told refined his five Jeremiah knew better and he told them so and as a result, you know by now 586 BC.

The city of Jerusalem fell the Babylonians lay siege. They destroyed the temple of Solomon.

The devastated the buildings and the Beautiful Pl., Jerusalem, the city of Zion lay in ruins. Jeremiah sees it all, not only before the fact is his prophecy reveals 451 chapters but when it falls. Chapter 52 and on into his Lamentations is interesting. God preserved Lamentations for all of us to read so many years later as many of our cities are going through terrible times you seen it, so if I you wonder what's next is you turn on the set ended, maybe even worse than it was yesterday, we turn to Lamentations and we realize that there's a limit there's a limit to God's patience and there's a limit to his grace and we wonder if were getting near all things, along with all of that comes a virus sweeps its way not only across Asia but ended our country and then beyond into Europe and now it's worldwide, it's even on the rise.

From time to time you go was then asked Jeremiah gives us the words I want to seen afflictions chapter 3 verse one I've seen afflictions that come from the rot of the Lord's anger is lead me in the darkness shorting out all lights. He has turned his hand against me again and again all day long.

He's made my skin and flesh grow old he's broken my bones is besieged me and surrounded me with anguish and an end to stress buried me in a dark place, like those long did this man is at the bottom finally reach bottom you been there. I've been there on previous occasions we've all been there. In fact, this is a this is the third chapter of a heartbreaking elegy recorded by Jeremiah, who with his own eyes sees it with his old man writes of all this that is happening around him going to tell you the dangerous part of it all. If you're not careful, we begin to entertain alien thoughts, please hear me. Unlike Jeremiah's audience. Please heed hear and heed my words when all this begins to happen you move into a realm of hope, less mass to dangerous place to be. I call it dangerous because that is where our adversary loves for us to be when you lose hope for love preacher loses. Oh, he applauds 20 years is saying things like, I've hit bottom. Because he knows at that point, it is easy to make satanic choices. It is easy when we are at the bottom to have alien thoughts and come to wrong solutions and begin to feel fear that makes us want to hide and panic that makes us want to run and I'm really going to say it, and to put an end to our lives, which is the adversary's desire for every one of us never doubted he wants you to take your life as heartbreaking when you hit bottom.

You remember something important you're going to pull out of the self-pity. Jeremiah is our model. He does that very thing.

Look, if you will, beginning at verse 19 and concentrate okay. Let's all concentrate before my suffering and homelessness is bitter beyond words so is at the bottom. Admittedly is no place to look, but what he does. He looks up I will never forget this awful time.

As I grieve over my loss yet I still dare to hope. Love those words in verse 21.

I still dare to hope and at the bottom. I've come to the pit of my life devastation is all around me. I dare to hope when when I remember this okay. Many women this is what we remember when we come to the bottom there is right from the inspired word of God look for yourself. I remember this, what is it he remembers well look at the next few verses. He will tell us. Verse 22. I remember the Lord's loving kindness never ends his loyal love never ends, never second.

I remember his mercies, plural always more mercies than misery, his mercies never cease. I remember that in the pit at the bottom. I remember Lord, your loving kindness never ceases your mercies never end your faithfulness never diminishes. It's always great. I remember that such thoughts. Please observe or provided for us every morning. I love it. Verse 23, his mercies begin afresh each morning. Think of it as each sunrise even when you can't see the sun behind the clouds. That son is there.

It's coming up every morning every morning every single morning is what you love is fresh his mercies, which is his ministry to us in our misery never cease, and his greatness never diminishes new every morning I sit on my back porch screened in back porch. I look out over those short trees behind our back porch and I see the sun beginning to rise and I remember your loyal love is ceasing your mercies are not running out your faithfulness is not diminishing. Thank you Lord for the sunrise. Thank you for the remodel care what the news said last night. I don't care how bleak it may seem it in the Outlook.

I'm taking the Outlook and when I look up, I see loyal love divine mercies and phenomenal undiminished greatness all pouring forth from the Lord. He is, he never takes a high he never goes away.

In the message we read. I remember it all. Oh how well I remember the feeling of hitting the bottom but there's one other thing I remember and remembering I keep a grip on hold God's loyal love couldn't have run out his merciful love couldn't have dried up there created new every morning how great your faithfulness and that he concludes I'm sticking with God. I say it over and over.

He's all I've got left. He's all I've got left and so verse 24 I say to myself, look at this in place of self-pity. As a result of the sunrise in the things I'm remembering coming to mind. I say to myself, the Lord is my inheritance club 19 is not my inheritance. It is not my inheritance devastation in cities is not my inheritance. My inheritance is not up you who were attempting to take charge.

Furthermore, my inheritance is neither Republican or Democrat. My inheritance is the living God. My inheritance is the Lord my God, he is the one, full of mercy, full of love for greatness that sunrise every morning for a number of years. We enjoyed the presence of Sam Johnson, Sam Johnson the war hero shot down over North Vietnam Vietcong captured in putting in what they called the Hanoi Hilton and there he lived for almost get this seven years, seven years. Let that sink in. Eating whatever crawled across the floor. Snakes, lizards, roaches, rats, whatever.

He survived. He told me. On one occasion chart the way I was able to make it is inside my head was another message inside. I was telling myself this is in the end, visiting visitors and even the beginning of the end. Unlike Churchill's conclusions are that this may be the end of the beginning. I think it were to look at it. So I go to start all over again. I been through the beginning, but I'm moving toward a time when God will take charge and there'll be relief will be rescued. I'll be liberated. I'll get out and be able to tell my story. Furthermore, about companions were believing with me here in the limited sit here. It's not on the television set is not on the radio in your car is not usual reading. It's in the word of God planted in the mind that nullifies self-pity and says to self-pity to God. I'm not listening to your pleading voice telling me life is over seven over you think life is over a digital experiment go home going the bathroom stand next to a mirror and go if it fogs over you still have hope okay if it doesn't you call 911. You got a real problem, but it will fog over every time you know I'm still here. He's got a plan. So the breath in your lungs. You didn't give it to yourself. God gave it to you. You gotta beat your heart. You didn't give it to yourself. He gives you that electrical charge every time it beats every time something bad, but all I got at night and I lay on his left side on the Y but that's how sleep but when I do I hear hopefully the bump on and I don't like that.

Some people say just, she for approval of the bumps.

I don't want to hear the child born of a put my hand this over to Palmer to pass along to all of you with no extra charge to put your hand on your head and you have a wonderful wife and assure you that that helps to and I got I got nowand I will hear anything but I love you Chuck.

This is the Lord. I love you tonight your precious to me because your mind and you have my inheritance. You have my future. You have my whole this is for you Chuck and in silent ways.

He breaks through and blots out all use the drag me down, turn off television for once, is her into a world where God has a chance to speak. Listen to them. My lovingkindness is yours. My mercies are yours faithfulness yours to claim my inheritance is yours. My deliverance is yours.

My compassion is yours.

It's all yours. But the world will never remind you of that. It will only tell you what's going wrong and how bad things are not with the Lord. He doesn't live his life in his existence and in in in in the realm of bad news. He suffered overall in all through all and beyond all you when you latch onto that when you pray when you pray, I encourage you to your knees, pour out your heart flush out all the worry all the fears get rid of that say Lord I need the reminder that you're in charge and you're still in control. Just as you were just as you were when Sam Johnson was imprisoned in that awful place of torture you were still there. You sort through it initially verse 55 pieces I called on your name oh Lord from deep within the pit.

There it is called on your name, you heard me when I cried, listen to my pleading hear my cry for help. Yes, you came when I called you told me not fear there it is again not fear our subject today is what to remember you hit bottom. Listening to Bible teacher, pastor and author Chuck Swindoll. He's teaching from the book of Lamentations section of Scripture that Chuck refers to as Jeremiah's Journal of woes to learn more about this ministry or Chuck Swindoll. Be sure to visit us online@insightworld.org insight for living has been on the air since July 1979, and we've never missed a single day.

Over the decades, Chuck has deposited thousands of sermons into the archives. It's not unusual for us to feature something that was originally preached, 20, 30, even 40 years ago.

Our current study and Lamentations however was delivered only a few months ago and it's refreshing to hear Chuck's insight on the current cultural battles taking place in our world and to see the sobering parallels between Jeremiah's anguish in our own we living in harsh times when kindness is rare where people are polarized by politics and emotions are spiraling out of control in times like these. God is calling us to a higher place and if you're ready to rise above the heaviness, let me recommend a classic book from Chuck called encourage me, caring words for heavy hearts. This book targets those who need a lift but it's also a great book to give away as an act of kindness to others in need. You can purchase a copy of encourage me right now by going to insight.org/offer or by calling us if you're listening in the United States dial 1-800-772-8888. In closing, let me say a word of thanks to our monthly companions and all those who give generously you're accomplishing far more than you'll ever know because your gift allows us to deliver the truth of God's word to millions around the world. Thanks so much to give a one time donation today.

Call us if you're listening in the US, call 1-800-772-8888 or by going to insight.org it's almost impossible to escape the pervasive news these days is everywhere and most of us are craving a break from the TV and a reprise from the images of rage disease, civil unrest in this volatile season insight for living ministries has continued to serve as a safe harbor where good news is celebrating many tell us that the Bible teaching from Chuck Swindoll provides a refreshing getaway chaos and confusion of our times with these daily visits with Chuck are made possible in part by monthly companions inviting you to join this influential team of monthly supporters signed up today by calling us your listening in the United States dial 1-800-772-8888 in this hospital first world people are craving, just one gentle with God's goodness, we respond are simple act of generosity will be transformed into bed and resistible suite for someone decided return become a regular monthly by calling listening in the United States dial 1-800-772-8888 or go online insight or month and Chuck Swindoll continues our study of Jeremiah's Journal of woes tomorrow on insight for living in the preceding message what to remember when hit bottom and the sound recording were copyrighted in 2020 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. all rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited