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Ruling Your Captor
Jeremiah 29:28
"For therefore he sent unto us in Babylon, saying, This captivity is long: build ye houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them."
Reality can often be very sobering. The false prophets of Jeremiah's day did not like the reality of his preaching. Jeremiah prophesied that the captivity of Israel was going to last for a long time. In the verse above, you see that Jeremiah advised the people to build houses and plant gardens because of the length of their captivity. Jeremiah knew that most of the Israelites who lived in Babylon would never leave their captivity, so he helped them to rule their captivity instead of being a captive of their captivity.
There are many who read this devotional who have become a captive of some circumstance in their life. There are some who are captive to bad health. Maybe your health has turned for the worse, and as far as you know you will be a captive to your health for the remainder of your life. Some are a captive to divorce or a bad relationship. Others are captive to poor finances. Some have a unique captivity that only they will have to bear the rest of their lives. The key to your captivity is to not be a captive to it, but to rule it. If you will follow Jeremiah's advice to Israel then you can rule your captor.
First, accept your captivity. Notice that Jeremiah said, "...build ye houses,..." This was Jeremiah's way of telling them to accept that they were going to be captives for a long time. When you become a captive to a situation in your life you must not live in denial, for living in denial will keep you from becoming productive during your captivity. You will never rule your captor until you accept your captivity.
Second, don't complain. Jeremiah told the people to dwell in the houses that they built. In other words, he was telling them that they could either enjoy the homes that the built, or they could complain about their situation. Christian, you can complain about your captivity, but that will not help your situation. You still have life, and you should decide to live your life even though you are in captivity.
Third, stay busy serving God. Jeremiah told the people to plant gardens. In other words, make your time of captivity a fruitful time. I have found that God has used many of the things that have made me a captive to be the most fruitful elements of my life. If you are a captive to your captivity, then you are missing out on the greatest opportunity to become fruitful. Use your situation to help others who are captive to the same captivity. Joseph was fruitful when he was a slave and in prison, and you can be as well. Don't allow your captivity to take away the time of fruitfulness that you can enjoy.
Last, count your blessings. Jeremiah told the people to eat the fruit of their gardens. In other words, though you are a captive, you will still have blessings that you can enjoy. If you allow your captivity to be your captor, then you will miss out on these blessings. However, if you decide to rule your captor, then you will find that God will bless you in your captivity and that you will have many opportunities to count the blessings of these fruits.
You may not be able to change your captivity, but you can still be productive and joyful in it. You can either be a captive of your captivity, or you can be a ruler over your captor. With God's help you can become a ruler over your captor and make your captivity the most productive and fruitful portion of your life.