Bloom Where You Are Planted
A Sermon by Brent J. Eelman
October 14, 2007
Abington Presbyterian Church

Jeremiah 29: 1, 4-7
    These are the words of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the remaining elders among the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.
    4Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce. 6Take 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. 7But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.*
 

When I was living in Texas, I got to know a number of native Texans. They are extremely proud and loyal to the “Republic of Texas”. Their cars would often have bumper stickers that read “Native Born Texan”. One of my Texas born parishioners was extremely proud of the fact that he was a sixth generation Texan. His oldest daughter went off to college and then got married. Her husband was transferred by his company to Illinois. There as exiles in the North, they started their family. My friend was extremely distraught that his first grandchild, the eighth generation, would be born in Illinois. I found out later that a few weeks before the birth he sent his son-in-law a package. In the package was a shoebox filled with dirt from his backyard. There were instructions with the box of dirt. “Place this box under the bed where my grandchild is born. I want him to be born over Texas Soil.”

The reading from Jeremiah was also a message to exiles in the north: not a box of dirt, but a letter. It contained specific instructions on how to live and what to expect. I believe that it also speaks to many in our world today. I have three brief points: First, the importance of Jeremiah’s letter for the exiles; second, the importance of this letter for us; and third, the good news, or gospel that it proclaims to us.

I

600 years before Christ, Jerusalem was conquered by the Babylonians. They wanted to subdue the Jewish people so they took the king, his mother, civil leaders, artists and craftsmen, (upwards 10,000 people) and carted them back to Babylon. This action would totally gut the Jewish kingdom of any leadership that could lead a rebellion and is known as the “Babylonian Captivity.” Jeremiah’s letter, (that was just read,) was addressed to these captive exiles in the north. Jeremiah was not the only prophet in those days. There were many others, but most of them were phonies and fakirs, albeit popular. These false prophets had a very upbeat message for the Jews in exile. They told them, “Don’t fret, in a few years, you will be released to return home. Just be patient.” These false placed their hope in Egypt, or Assyria, or one of the other rising powers to conquer the Babylonians. Consequently the exiles held captive in Babylon believed that their condition was temporary and so they waited around for something to happen.

Jeremiah’s letter contradicted these false prophets. His message was simple. You will be here for 75 years. So build houses, plant gardens, and settle in for the long haul. Have children, and have your children marry, so that you will prosper in numbers. Then the clincher: “Pray for the Babylonians… the people who hauled you off to this land. Pray that they may prosper, because if they do, you will.” Let me condense Jeremiah’s letter: “You are in Babylon. You will be there for a long time. You should bloom where you are planted. Get out of your holding pattern and flourish!”

II

This letter also addresses many people today. We may not be captives but many of us wish we were someplace else: a different job, a different school, a different neighborhood, a different state, a different church, a different house, a different retirement community… (you can fill in the blank). We feel caught, trapped, existing where we do not want to be: exiles of a different sort.

When I went to college, I was assigned a room mate for my freshman year. He was a nice enough guy. He was smart and personable. But he was not at the college he wanted to be at. He was at his second choice. (It probably did not help that he had a father who was an alumnus of his first choice.) The litany that I heard for that first year was how much he did not want to be there, and that he was going to transfer out….etc. etc. He was miserable. He did not make friends. He did not join clubs or a fraternity. He put his time in.. because, in his mind, he was not going to be there long. Four years later, he was still there. He graduated, but his college experience was spent, wishing he was somewhere else.

The significance of Jeremiah’s letter to the exiles for us, is that it addresses us in the places where we don’t want to be, where we don’t feel comfortable, where we don’t feel at home, where we feel trapped and alienated… and says to us: “You are there… and it might be for the long haul… bloom where you are planted.” Make the best of it… live and enjoy the environment, the people, the history and traditions of where you are. Glorify God, wherever you are!

III

There is gospel, (good news), in this message to us. It tells us that no matter where we are, God is with us… God listens to our prayers… God calls us to thrive. Let me break this down to some specific directives.

  1. If we are going to bloom where we are planted, it takes an attitude adjustment. If you cry in your beer and dream about being some place else, you will find yourself alone. You need to change your attitude. Four days after we dropped our daughter at college in Massachusetts, we were in Texas and got the phone call that every parent gets at some time. “I don’t fit in… I don’t have friends. The food is no good. I don’t like my room mate.” I was on the extension phone and I heard Karen say to our daughter. “Look. Fake it until you make it.” Good advise. If you act like your excited to be where you are, if you act like you are happy.. pretty soon you will be. Social scientists tell us that even faking laughter soon leads to genuine laughter.

  1. It is OK to think of where you want to be… but remember you are where you are. Make the best of it. Unpack your boxes, and make yourself at home. No one wants to hear it, but it may be longer than temporary.

  1. Take on the discipline of prayer. Jeremiah told the exiles to pray for their captors. Because if they thrived, the exiles would also. Prayer needs to be at the heart of our life where ever we are, but especially when we feel alienated, alone, and wishing we were somewhere else. I have worked as a minister in some pretty hard churches, and I will admit that at times, I didn’t like being there, (clergy are human). One of the disciplines that has helped me in my work is prayer. I pray for my church… regardless how I feel about things at that particular time…. Because as Jeremiah states, my welfare is contingent on it. Finally, if you have a co-worker, acquaintance, family member, who is bothering you, pray for them. Pray for God’s blessing on their lives… because you might be with them for a long time.

Jeremiah’s message is clear to us… “Bloom where you are planted.” It is not an easy message.. because more often than not, we wish we were someplace else, doing something else…. God has placed us where we are… the circumstances may not be to our liking… but how we respond to our challenge is crucial… We can bloom where we are planted or whither away. God calls us to bloom. This is the Gospel. Amen.


*The New Revised Standard Version Bible, (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers) 1989.

Abington Presbyterian Church, Abington, Pennsylvania,  www.apcusa.org