I waited patiently for the Lord; and He reached down to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the pit of destruction, out of the mud; and He set my feet on a rock making my footsteps firm.
Psalm 40:1-2
An incident from childhood makes this verse especially meaningful to me and brings it to life. As a young child, my family visited friends in a rural area on the outskirts of town. All the kids went out in the yard to play baseball. One ball was hit hard enough to land in the muddy field next to the yard. I ran out to retrieve the ball. When I reached it, my feet began to sink deep into the mud until it was up over my shoes. I tried to take a step but couldn’t move without losing my balance. Somehow, I stepped out of my shoes, but that only made me sink into the mud with bare feet. It was terrifying! One of the other kids heroically came to rescue me, but she also became completely stuck. I remember my dad coming out when he heard us screaming for help. He wisely laid large wooden planks across the muddy area so he could walk out and pull us out of the mud. How wonderful it was to feel something firm under my feet again!
Sin is like that mud. We just sink deeper and deeper. We get stuck in it, and there seems to be no way out. Have you experienced that? When we are faced with a temptation, we may be aware that the particular attitude or action would not be pleasing to God. But we can easily justify it — It’s what I really need. And no one will be hurt by it. I’ll only do it this one time. No one is perfect anyway. We don’t mind getting our feet just a little dirty. But that one wrong choice can turn us in a direction leading away from God. We get in deeper and deeper. God never leaves us, but we can no longer experience closeness with Him while we are choosing to go our own way. Life gets out of balance. The joy and peace we had in walking with the Lord are gone. Nothing is satisfying.
But our Father is waiting for us to call for help. No matter what you or I have done, no matter how deep we are stuck in the mire of sin, God is eagerly waiting to rescue us. Psalm 18 describes what it is like to be trapped in sin and then the joy of being rescued. I love verse 19: He rescued me because He delighted in me. Notice that He delights in us while we still need rescuing! He doesn’t wait until we have completely cleaned ourselves up to tell us that He delights in us. The experience of God’s grace and mercy in rescuing me from the pit of destruction has changed my life. He “set my feet on a rock,” and that rock is Jesus. My heart is full of joy and thankfulness. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God … (Psalm 40:3).
PERSONAL REFLECTION
How have you experienced being stuck in the miry clay of sin? How did it start?
What steps did you take to become free?
Perhaps you are in a situation right now. Are you holding onto something that God is asking you to let go of…a hurt from childhood? Anger? A relationship? Bitterness? Are you spending your time on something that is not God’s best for you? He delights in you and promises to set you free if you come to Him in faith and obedience. How will you respond?
❤️ it!
Great illustration, Sherrilyn! I remember getting my boots stuck in the garden mud one spring as a child. To keep my balance, my foot came out my the boot and landed deep in the muck as well. My tears came from fear of getting in trouble because my mother hated dirt in any form. How thankful I am that I don’t have to fear God’s punishment when I feel stuck in overwhelming circumstances. He is always there to rescue and comfort me.