A Life of Deadlines
Good morning. I know not everyone reads this first thing, but I write these a couple of days ahead and wake up at 4:00 a.m. so I can read my Bible, eat breakfast, and get to my computer to send out this post.

Deadlines have always been a part of my life. As a kid with a paper route, I learned the importance of getting the news out on time. Later, I spent 24 years in sales, chasing quotas. Before that, I published Tucson Parent Magazine, where every issue had to be sold, written, designed, approved, printed, and distributed—each step with its own deadline.

During those challenging years, I became more connected to God. I prayed for ways to help Him “get the word out.” My articles took on more Christian themes. Next, I added a church directory. Having other Christian writers contribute would help, so I recruited a couple. I thought I was doing good work for God.
False Assumptions
But today, as we read Jeremiah 28–30, I realize something humbling: I had placed my hope in a false prophet. That prophet was me.

I told myself that if I did things for God, He would bless my publication. I believed that success would follow obedience. But God isn’t transactional. He’s a loving Father who gives good gifts to His children—not because we earn them, but because He delights in us. “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone?” (Matthew 7:9–11). We often try to win God’s favor with our plans, but Scripture teaches that His love is constant. He chastises us when we stray, yes—but His favor isn’t something we can manipulate.

I asked God to bless my magazine. Instead, He let it perish. And in its place, He gave me a job that lasted 24 years and provided more than I ever imagined. His plan was better than mine.
God’s Better Way
In Jeremiah 28, we meet Hananiah, a prophet who challenged Jeremiah. Hananiah’s message filled them with a sense of bright possibility. Jeremiah had been warning of disaster for 23 years. The people had seen their kings taken into Babylonian captivity and were now under Zedekiah, a puppet king appointed by Nebuchadnezzar. Many scoffed at even calling him Zedekiah, remembering him as Mattaniah (2 Kings 24:17).

Hananiah’s boldness was striking. He broke the wooden yoke Jeremiah wore as a symbol of Babylon’s rule (Jeremiah 28:10). But Jeremiah responded with the truth: “You have broken a wooden yoke, but in its place you will get a yoke of iron” (Jeremiah 28:13–14). God declared Hananiah’s death within the year—and it happened (Jeremiah 28:16–17).

Another false prophet appears in chapter 29: Shemaiah the Nehelamite. His name means “dreamer,” and the place he claimed to be from—Nehelam—doesn’t even exist. He was a dreamer from a place of imagination. That description hit close to home. I had no reason to expect God to bless my project, but I hoped He would, anyway.

False prophets lead us astray—not just others, but sometimes ourselves. Like Hananiah and Shemaiah, we can become so convinced of our own plans we mistake them for God’s. But Jeremiah 29 offers a better way: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord… (Jeremiah 29:11). God’s plan isn’t always what we expect, but it’s always better.
Surrendering Our Vision
That experience taught me to stop trying to manipulate God and start trusting Him. My prayer changed from “Lord, bless my plan” to “Not what I want, Lord, but Your will.” When things feel like they’re falling apart, I find peace in knowing I’m in His will—and there’s no place I’d rather be.

I’ve been in a valley these past few months, but I hold on to the promise in Jeremiah 30: “I will restore the fortunes of Jacob’s tents” (Jeremiah 30:18). God is faithful. Whatever plans I had for my life, He has something better in mind.

So let me ask you: Are you in a place where something feels broken—or about to break? Are your actions failing to produce the results you hoped for? Maybe the problem isn’t the outcome. Maybe it’s the plan itself.

Take a lesson from these chapters. Stop trying to coerce God into your vision. Trust Him. Surrender your plans. And prepare to see what He has in store for you.
Tomorrow, we will read Jeremiah 31–32.