If you have run with footmen and they have tired you out, Then how can you compete with horses?  If you fall down in a land of peace, How will you do in the thicket of the Jordan? (Jeremiah 12:5)

 There is no doubt that we are living in very extreme times,  However it is always important that we have a positive attitude since we know that God is always in control.  But keeping that in mind, I need to also include a warning, things may, and probably will get worse, before they get better.

In the passage above, Jeremiah wanted some answers and he approached the Lord in prayer as though he were in a courtroom.  He wanted to know why God allowed the wicked to prosper while God's people were having such a difficult time.  Jeremiah wanted God to punish the wicked while making things easier for His people.  God asked Jeremiah the question, if His people could not handle what they were going through at that time, what would they do when things got even worse?

We must be patient in times of testing.  God knows our troubles and will only allow us to handle what we can bear.  We should always remember, He is working things out for our good.

There are 3 points that I would mention here.  1.  GOD ALLOWS EVIL PEOPLE TO PROSPER ONLY FOR A WHILE.  2.  IF LITTLE THINGS GET US DOWN, WHAT WILL WE DO WHEN IT REALLY GETS ROUGH?  3.  TRUST GOD NO MATTER HOW DIFFICULT THE CIRCUMSTANCES MAY BE.

Although God sometimes allows evil people to prosper, we do know that God can bring judgment against them at any time.  We trust God even when we do not know what He is doing.

In this passage, "running with the footmen" would be fairly easy when compared to running with horses.  Can you imagine trying to beat a horse running while you are on foot?  How will we be able to withstand the rigors of coming antagonism if the present hostility is wearing us out. The passage also asked how will we do in the flood plain of the Jordan when the water overruns the bank.  Flooding not only resulted in the Jordan having deep water, but also drove wild animals into the city where the people were. Nobody wants to look out their window and see a Lion in their back yard.  In essence, things would be worse if that happened.

We can be sure that since God is a just God, the wicked will get what is coming to them sooner or later.  But we know that God will also take care of us.  We will learn from adversity if we just hang in there.  We should thank God for "fast horses and deep water" situations in our lives.