Jeremiah ministered the Word during difficult times. The people of God had turned their backs on their God, and He allowed them to pass through deep waters, both spiritually and physically. In chapter 14, they had experienced a physical drought which should have reminded them of their spiritual condition. Jeremiah sought to bring them back to a place where they would recognize that it is the Lord who can meet their every need! He is where their hope and ours ought to be.

When we begin to put our hope in other resources to meet our daily needs, we set ourselves up for disappointment. The Lord Jesus addressed this very thing in Matthew 6. There, He spoke of hoping in our God to meet our daily provisions (Mt. 6:9–13), our relational pardon (v. 12), and our spiritual protection (v. 13).

The Lord Jesus goes on in the chapter to remind us that if we are going to enjoy the hope that is ours in Him, we must have the right priorities in life: “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven” (vv. 19–20). When our hope is stored up in things here in this world, it becomes like a weight pulling us under the waves instead of an anchor that keeps us steady!

Instead of worrying, we ought to “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (v. 33). The key to less anxiety in our lives is to practice setting our hope on the very One who is able and willing to provide for our every need (Phil. 4:19).