The average American is exposed to about 3000 advertising messages a day.

Jeremiah 26:1-22

Reference:  v.9  So do not listen to your prophets, your diviners, your interpreters of dreams, your mediums or your sorcerers who tell you, 'You will not serve the king of Babylon.' (NIV Bible)

Explore:  There are so many people telling us what we should do, how we should look and what we should buy.  On the Union of Concerned Scientists website they say, "The average American is exposed to about 3000 advertising messages a day, and globally corporations spend over $620 billion each year to make their products seem desirable and to get us to buy them."  From my travels through America, Europe, Asia and Australia, each major metropolis seems fairly savvy when it comes to advertising.  Whether it's beauty or technology products, each business ultimately wants you to think that you would be better off with what they have to offer.  Sometimes its hard to know what you would be better off with as everyone is vying for your attention.

Application:  In 600BC there probably wasn't as much advertising around as there is today in 2010 but there were still many people wanting you to take their advice.  When Jeremiah stood before the people to tell them to turn from their evil ways and follow God, he was not the only voice speaking.  There were many other 'prophets' and advisers instructing the people in what they should do.  People still had the choice of who they would listen to.  So maybe it wasn't so different to what it is like today.  We hear a lot of advice coming to us from different avenues but we still have the choice of who we will listen to. Because God loves you and is deeply interested in your decisions, I can guarantee that He will be throwing His advice in the ring.  It is still up to us, however, as to which advice we take on board.

Prayer:  Lord, thank you for being interested in our daily lives.  Help us to discern Your voice amongst the noise and heed Your advice.  Amen.

What are the decisions you are having to make at the moment?  Put aside some time to discern what God is saying about this.