Psalm 40:1-3 I waited patiently for the Lord to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along. He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see what he has done and be amazed. They will put their trust in the Lord.
Yesterday afternoon, we received a call from a neighbor who lives a few miles down the road. Her husband was sick in the bed, recovering from COVID-19, and his blood sugar level was elevated above 300. One of their cows had gone into labor, but there was a little problem. The calf was in breech presentation. Our friend could see one lonely hoof extruding, and it was upside down. The mama cow had calved three times before without any problem, but she wasn’t going to be able to deliver her calf this time without a little help. We worked together to get the cow into the head gate. My husband gently pulled both of the back hooves out and tied a rope around them. The rope was then hooked to a come along, and utilizing the come along, the calf was gently pulled from his mother’s womb. She fell to the ground and took her first breath. Jeff quickly wiped the secretions from her nose and mouth, and she took her first breaths of fresh air. We released the mama cow, and she went straight to her new baby, and she began cleaning her up and claiming her as her own. How awesome it is that God allows us to participate in such wonderful aspects of life! But it is even far more wonderful to realize that God is ready, willing, and able to pull me out of any and every circumstance that we find ourselves in.
Do you ever feel like you are sinking in a pit of mud, and you just can’t pull yourself out? Last weekend we were trying to move a calf to another field and as we were walking through the muddy area of the field, my boot sunk down deep into the mud, and I almost fell over trying to free myself. It is quite easy to get stuck in a rut. We may fall into habits which we never intended to develop, and before we know it, we are stuck. We are stuck in circumstances in which we can not figure out how to pull ourselves out.
Consider King David’s words. He waited patiently for the Lord, and the Lord heard his cry. He pulled him out of the pit of his despair. Yes, the Lord pulled him out of the mud and the mire, and set his feet firmly on a rock to stand and steadied him as he walked along. That same God that pulled David out of the pit of despair is the very same God that we serve. He hears our cries, and when we patiently await Him, He will pull us out of our pits too!
Don’t you just love the Lord’s response to David’s cry. David said, “I waited patiently for the Lord to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry.” He didn’t say, I cried out to the Lord, and He lectured me, scolded me, or fussed at me. No, he said, I waited patiently and the Lord turned to me and heard my cry. David didn’t have to prove himself to God. He didn’t have to earn grace. He only had to cry out to the Lord and wait patiently for Him, and our great God saved Him from despair.
We are all human, and as such, we are all born into sin. We are going to get bogged down in the mud and mire of sin from time to time. We are going to try to jump into situations feet first now and then, without praying about the situation and asking God to take the lead. Thankfully, we have a loving, caring Father who is full of grace and mercy. Our Father will gladly place a rope around us and gently pull us out, telling us to come along and follow Him. He sets us on solid ground. He guides our paths. He pulls us out of desperate circumstances. He cleans us up, and claims us as His, and He gives us a new song to sing.
If you are finding yourself stuck in a rut of despair this morning, don’t stay there. Cry out to the Lord, and wait patiently for His deliverance. God is waiting for your call, and He is ready to answer just as we answered the call of our neighbor. Don’t live in the despair of your circumstances, but rather rejoice in the joy of the Deliverer. Won’t you let Him pull you out today?
Inspirations from the Funny Farm 