⁵ This is what the Lord says:

Cursed is the person who trusts in mankind.
He makes human flesh his strength,
and his heart turns from the Lord.
⁶ He will be like a juniper in the Arabah;
he cannot see when good comes
but dwells in the parched places in the wilderness,
in a salt land where no one lives.
⁷ The person who trusts in the Lord,
whose confidence indeed is the Lord, is blessed.

⁸ He will be like a tree planted by water:
it sends its roots out toward a stream,
it doesn’t fear when heat comes,
and its foliage remains green.
It will not worry in a year of drought
or cease producing fruit.

Jeremiah 17:5-8 CSB

One thing about a counterfeit is that you think it has as much value but you didn’t pay much for it. It is made of a weaker material, it falls apart easily, and it truly holds no value for anyone. The counterfeit seemed to be the easier way to go yet you will have to continue buying counterfeit after counterfeit because it just keeps falling apart. The longevity is stunted and you can’t even trade it for anything. Sure it may look appealing on the outside but on the inside, there is nothing, no substance, no value. 

When we put our trust in mankind or our own strength, it is the knockoff. We cannot sustain it without falling apart. That is the curse. We established our lives in a wasteland, nothing can grow there and support life. When you put your trust in something so weak and unstable i.e. man/self everything produced will be weak and unstable. When we think we are strong, we don’t need the Lord and when we don’t need the Lord everything falls apart. Our view is stunted just like the shrub in the desert. Its roots are so shallow it can’t even take in the water when it rains. It’s so small, low to the ground not able to see when good comes. This counterfeit faith is aimless and rootless. 

Now when we put our trust in the Lord, the real strength, we will forever be sustained, there is more value than you could ever imagine. I love when it says, “whose confidence is indeed the Lord” it takes it to a whole other level. There is wisdom when you are in Jesus! Our sights have been expanded, and we can see so much further and make smarter decisions because we are led by the Lord. Being planted by the water is WISE! Being planted by the water thinks generations and generations ahead. There is aim, and there is hope. The roots have taken direction to be deeply planted towards the stream. Rivers of living water! No matter the condition, the heat from the scorching sun or the drought, it is connected to the living water and will remain green, always producing fruit that is full!  

I don’t know about you, but I do not want to rely on my strength or put my trust in a counterfeit, I don’t want to always have to strive and stress and keep redoing things because my view is so limited. I want to be connected to the true sustainer so that even when I am experiencing a mess in the world, I will be able to go through it with the confidence of my Lord. 

Journal Prompts

Talk about a time when you relied on others or yourself removing God from the picture? How did that turn out? What did you do? What do you wish you would have done differently?

Now talk about a time when you fully trusted in the Lord. How did that play out? What were your thoughts and feelings about it?

Prayer

Father in Heaven, thank you for being the Living Water, it is in you I put my trust in, indeed the Lord is my confidence. I pray that I remain connected to the true source so that I will always produce fruit and remain green and valuable to those that I come across. I don’t want to be empty or dry. In Jesus’ Name, I Pray, Amen

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