You're misreading one of the most popular Bible verses ever.

And you're missing out because of it.

If you’re new around here, here’s how this works: Every morning I get up early, I pray, I read, I journal, and then I write what God puts on my heart. People ask me frequently, “How do you write every day?” And I say, “It’s easy.” Why?

Because there’s no pressure.

I wake up knowing whatever comes out comes out. I leave it up to God. Typos and all.

But can I be really honest with you? This week has been tough. I find myself staring at my journal and nothing seems to be coming. I watch the blinking cursor on this page as I’m typing and think, “What am I going to say?”

“Father, I feel empty,” I wrote this morning. “I don’t have much right now.” And then I sat there for a bit. After I don’t know how long, I got a response. That’s when the Holy Spirit pointed me to a verse. And when I read that verse in context, my mind was blown and I got my answer to what’s been going on.

And I need to share that with you, because I think it’s relevant for anyone who is stuck and just isn’t feeling it. And it all centers around a verse you’ve heard a million times—a verse I think you’re reading absent it’s important context. That context, though, is what you and I need to get through these dry spells.

First of all, let me start with what the Holy Spirit told me when I confided about feeling so empty.

“Jon, this isn’t complicated,” he said. “Seek me and I will be found.”

“Seek me and I will be found.”

That’s a scripture. But I couldn’t remember where it’s from, so I looked it up. You’ll never guess where that brought me. And when I got there, I was shocked at what I found. Here’s the verse: “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.”

Do you know where that’s from? Jeremiah 29:13. That’s just two verses after one of the most popular passages in the Bible. It’s printed on coffee mugs, barn wood, bumper stickers, and probably more than a few tattoos: Jeremy 29:11…

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

You probably could recite at least part of that in your sleep if you’ve been around the church for a little bit, right?

But as is being drilled into me in seminary, context is king. So I backed up to the beginning of Jeremiah 29 to see what exactly is going on in these verses. And I’m going to be honest, I never realized it. I never saw it. I probably never read it. It was shocking. And I wonder if you’ve never seen it either. Let me show you and then explain.