The battle of life

Yesterday, there was a baby dedication at the church I go to. And the passage that the parents chose to read was Jeremiah 29:11, which some of you may be familiar with: 'For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.' The person next to me at the time said that it always annoyed her when people quoted this verse, because when it was written, they were apparently about to go into battle, and she was annoyed about it being taken completely out of context.


Which got me thinking. Because, in a way, isn't that baby just as much going into a battle? If you're not a religious person, that battle is partly a battle of survival, and then a battle to thrive, grow, etc. If you are religious, then it's a spiritual battle that this would more refer to. And that's a battle we all face, with two great armies marching against one another, in the battle of life - the battle, in fact, for life.


It's an interesting concept, I think. There is also a point about things being taken out of context; I mean, one man I knew once talked about how there's a line in the Bible where it says 'There is no God.' Which, if you quoted that, would be completely out of context. Because, immediately preceding it, were these words: 'Only a fool says:' Though that doesn't mean that things have no importance, even if they are taken out of context. It can just sometimes be a bit dangerous if you start making claims with quotes as your support, if they are taken out of context. So I suppose that's a bit of a double point there.