Ever had those seasons when you feel almost like Samson with shorn head turning the philistines millstone like an ox, unable to throw off your enemies (Judges 16:21), unable to see a way out. I know that I have, and those enemies can be anything from feelings of depression, stress or feeling overwhelmed by bad habits.
But even Samson fulfilled Gods word for his life. God always fulfils His promises, even when the circumstances seem impossible, even when we are weak and broken. We may give up on ourselves but God never gives up on us. There is always hope when we cry out to Him.
“Turn thee unto me, and have mercy upon me; For I am desolate and afflicted. The troubles of my heart are enlarged: O bring thou me out of my distresses. Look upon mine affliction and my pain; And forgive all my sins. Consider mine enemies; for they are many; And they hate me with cruel hatred.” Psalm 25:16-19 KJV
Hope in God
When there seems no power to overcome, when there seems no breakthrough and when we try to accomplish victory but get driven back, this is when we need to lift up our eyes cry out to God and focus on His strength rather than our weakness.
“Mine eyes are ever toward the LORD; For he shall pluck my feet out of the net.” Psalm 25:15 KJV
Our God will deliver us, He will not leave us under the power of our enemies. When we cry out to Him, we can be sure that He hears us and will bring relief as we wait upon Him to deliver us. We know well how our sins only lead us to sorrow and the root of many of our troubles is from our own shortcomings (Psalm 106:4-6).
“Observe the conflicting condition in which a gracious soul may be placed, his eyes are in heaven and yet his feet are sometimes in a net… We shall not grow weary of waiting upon God if we remember how long and how graciously he once waited for us”. C.H Spurgeon
Focus on God’s strength not your weakness.
When we feel trapped or stuck in a negative cycle, It is good to confess this to God with an open heart and to lift up our eyes to Him, focusing on His power, rather than our weakness. Whilst some may be able to modify their behaviour temporarily, our God cuts off the issue at the very root and cleanses the heart for good. Out of the heart spring these issues (Proverbs 4:23).
We serve a God full of mercy and kindness (Psalm 145:8). Our sin may be great, but His grace and His love are much greater (James 4:6-8). God’s faithfulness is overwhelming. He is able to heal our crooked ankles and empower us by His Holy Spirit to walk in His ways. To gather us from among those who do not know Him, to teach us His ways because we are lost without Him. He desires to set us apart for Himself.
“This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart;” Ephesians 4:17-18 NKJV
Remember all that God has done for you
“If you look at the world, you will be distressed. If you look within, you will be depressed. If you look at God you will be at rest” Corrie Ten Boom
We must life up our eyes and look to God. He will fulfil His promises, He will fulfil what He has spoken over us before the foundation of the world. And remember that before we were born, before we had done anything bad or good, He spoke over us His everlasting love (Psalm 139).
We can encourage ourselves in God by looking back and recall all the other ways that God has delivered us from trials and struggles. Remember that God has not changed and you can say like David “The God who delivered me from the paw of the bear and the mouth of the lion will defeat this uncircumcised philistine before me” (1 Samuel 17:26).
The size of the problem doesn’t really matter, God crushes all things under His feet. Our God sustains all things and through Him all life is given. When the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin, He grants us the grace of repentance, so that we can turn to Him and be healed. There is no condemnation but freedom.
Anything that obstructs God’s will in our lives will be removed.
Sometimes the root of the issue is not the circumstances or our enemies but our relationship with God. Maybe there is a work that God needs to do in our hearts. God can turn all of these situations for good and once we are right with Him its only a matter of time before a stone hits the forehead of our opposition. Anything that obstructs the will of God in our lives will be removed as we submit to God and choose to walk in His ways.
I think of David and Goliath; How wonderful that our God who has all power and weapons so great beyond comprehension, chooses to use a stone from a stream to defeat a giant. You may feel insignificant, like a small pebble but it is not about your size, but it is all about the God who goes with you.
And so, for our part we seek His face waiting for our heart to be transformed, and this we wait on God for, expectantly. Once God shows up and encounters our situation, there is no battle.
Encountering God brings transformation
“When it empties into the sea, the salty water there becomes fresh. Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live.’” Ezekiel 47:1, 5, 7-12 NIVUK
“Then the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench.” 1 Kings 18:38 NIVUK
Do not fear. Gods water will wash away the salt of sin and sorrow, the water that He gives will bring life. The fire of God’s love will consume the dust of our lives and so He will be glorified in us. He is enough. Let all that we are, and all that we have and all that we do not have, encounter Him, His holiness, His refining all-consuming person.