Stand Firm in Troublesome Times

As Jehovah’s people preach throughout the earth, they meet with various trials. The drama Stand Firm in Troublesome Times provides us with an excellent example of endurance in Jeremiah and reminds us that those who fight against us will not prevail. Keep this in mind as you consider the answers to the questions below.

1. What regular parental training did Jeremiah no doubt receive, and how did this prepare him for what was ahead?

2. What extraordinary experience did Jeremiah have while on his way back from Jerusalem?

3. What was Jeremiah’s initial response to Jehovah’s invitation to proclaim his message, and how did Jehovah respond?

4. How was Jeremiah treated by people in his hometown? How might this have affected his family?

5. What test did Urijah face and what happened to him?

6. How did Pashhur and the crowd treat Jeremiah, and how did Jehovah sustain Jeremiah?

7. For what was Baruch counseled, and how did he respond?

8. When the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem, how did Jeremiah and his faithful friends fare?

Consider a few more lessons we can glean from the example of Jeremiah and others in this drama: (1) What do you young ones learn from Jehovah’s training of Jeremiah? (2) When dealing with bouts of discouragement, how can we imitate Jeremiah and what will be the result? (Jer. 15:16; 20:9) (3) Both Jeremiah and Urijah were afraid, but what was the difference between these two men? How did it affect Jehovah’s protection of them? (Heb. 10:39) (4) As seen from Baruch, what effect can selfish pursuits have on our endurance? (5) What do we learn from the fact that Jeremiah was used to deliver Jehovah’s counsel to Baruch? (6) What qualities of Jeremiah and Baruch would you most like to imitate? (7) Of what can we be assured if we stand firm? (Jer. 1:19)