Fresh Air in Exile

Fresh Air in Exile

“Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease.”  Jeremiah 29:4-6 (ESV)

As I was walking from the graveside service of Dottie Noel I couldn’t help but to wonder how many times this lady uttered my name before the Lord in prayer. “At least 120 times” I told myself, “at least 120 times.” That’s how many days I stayed at the Colony of Mercy. Sometime back in the summer of 2003 I had to pack up some of my meager belongings and go into a part of New Jersey I never heard of and get myself right with The Almighty. I also had some legal issues to contend with and those who were involved with those matters at that time were okay with me going into this “exile” but when I got done with it my obligation to finish out what a State judge placed upon me had to meant or I was going to smell the stale air of a jail cell. So for a season it was better to breathe the fresh air of exile instead of the stale air of jail at home.

As I continued walking I met up with a young man who is at the Colony right now and he also has received this same blessing. When I mentioned to him about the fresh air in exile he also acknowledged the same relief I felt some eight years ago. He began to also share with me how, in small ways, he can see the work of God in his life without him being able to do much about it. As he was telling me about a better vehicle his wife had just gotten he started off by saying “My wife got a new van just the other day” and then went on to say that it may not be really that new but it sure was better than she had. “It’s new to her and that’s what matters” he concluded. We both praised God, thanked Jesus for what has been done and continued our way.

There was lunch after Dottie’s service. I sat at a table with some fellow Colony folk who I have known for some time as well as a new member to Colony clan. A whole pitcher of water was spilled; a Blackberry was saved, laughs were shared, Dottie’s husband, Jack, gave out hugs and words of encouragement to all those who thought they should encourage him, the moment was done and I drove home. Ain’t much of Freedom Fighter there, huh? Well it didn’t end there brothers. God would once again send a reminder about fresh air in exile. It happened Friday night as I watched Dr. Ray Pritchard on Keswick’s live stream give a message from Jeremiah 29 and it wasn’t going to be from those infamous verses we are used to. Oh no not this night.

Dr. Pritchard gave a history lesson into the 29^th chapter. He gave us the reason why God did what He did to the nation of Israel back in those days and wanted His people to understand that they still had to serve Him. Just because they weren’t in Israel didn’t mean El Elyon was not with them. Dr. Pritchard then went to say that at that time period it was better to serve God in Babylon than to try and serve Him in Jerusalem. I felt reassured when those words were spoken. It was as if God was saying, “You finally understand this part.” Just as sidebar here; all this was going to be discussed again between myself and my good brother in Christ, Bill Jahns, on Saturday night. I met Bill during my exile in Whiting back in 2003 and I have been blessed beyond measure in our friendship.

Chris Hughes

Exile is a funny word. When we use it in terms of some crazed leader of a fallen nation it takes on the meaning of allowing him to imprison himself. When we read it in God’s word we see it as a punishment of great proportions, not to dismiss it because it still can be so. But this morning I want to convey this this idea about being in exile…it just may be about renewing, refreshing, retooling, rehabilitating and regenerating rather than punishment. At times we forget that all God wants to do is have us understand that we need to reconcile with Him. He is allowed to take us to the extremes to get His message across. He is God and we don’t have to like where He takes us to do it. We don’t want to end up like the ten tribes of Israel that haven’t been heard from for well over two thousand years, do we? – Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and is a regular contributor to Freedom Fighter

GPS – God’s Positioning System: 2 Chronicles 9; Psalm 120; Proverbs 1

Compass Pointers: “Civilization has no hope. No hope at all, except through God. God alone can preserve a person, a family, a people group, a nation or any part of civilization that’s worth preserving. Without God, no one, no culture can survive. In fact, left to itself, civilization self-destructs. That’s the bad news. But the good news is that God does love the world and preserves it from experiencing its own complete self-destruction. Through the inexplicable gift of His Son, Jesus, God extends His love.” How God Saved Civilization  James L. Garlow

Navigation Rules to Memorize: Level 1: Proverbs 22:4; Level 2: Proverbs 22:1-6

Anchored to the Rock: When we miss out on prayer we cause disappointment to Christ, defeat ourselves and delight in the devil. – John Blanchard