This is Disaster Day.

Whoever decided to proclaim this disaster day probably had a good reason. Maybe a bunch of bad events piled up at this time of the year. Or maybe someone thought, “Why not have all our disasters on one day and get them over with!” (as if that were possible). But we probably wouldn’t hold a Disaster Day party. If this were “No More Disasters Day,” then we’d celebrate!

Everyone has experienced disasters, big and small—those times when things go wrong and life seems to be falling apart. It could be something personal like a relationship dissolving, a prized possession breaking, or a pet dying, or it could be something really big like a tornado, fire, earthquake, or war. Terrible events can do more than ruin our day; they can wreck our lives!

But the news isn’t all bad. In fact, it’s very good. God turns bad events into good (see Romans 8:28) and is able to keep his people from the worst kind of disaster.

The verse for today reminds us of that promise. Jeremiah was a prophet who experienced nothing but disaster from a human point of view. Yet he tells us that God’s plans are good, giving us hope for the future.

So if today, or any day, seems disastrous, remember God’s promises for you and keep trusting in him.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11).

To Do

Take a few minutes and read about the life of Jeremiah. Look in the Bible book with his name as the title, or use another Bible study resource.

Also on this day . . .

1870—The first motion picture was shown to a theater audience in Philadelphia.

1901—Ed Prescot patented the loop-the-loop roller coaster.

From Betsy Schmitt and Dave Veerman, 365 Trivia Twist Devotions: An Almanac of Fun Facts and Spiritual Truth for Every Day of the Year (Cincinnati: Standard, 2005). Scripture quotations are from the New Living Translation unless otherwise noted.