PSALM 118:13 – I was pushed hard, so that I was falling, but the Lord helped me.
THEME OF THE DAY: AT THE END OF YOUR ROPE. You have either heard it, read it, or even cried out, “I am at the end of my rope.” Now this is not a statement about bungee jumping. A standard dictionary defines the phrase as “a state in which one is not able to deal with a problem, difficult situation.” We might want to expand this emotional state of upheaval as “being overwhelmed, stressed out to the max, drowning in life’s circumstances, cannot take another thing, in over my head” and a host of other graphic pictures describing a person who feels physically, emotionally, and spiritually drained. Or, “at the end of their rope.”
Many of the Old Testament Psalms paint pictures of such individuals, and believers no less. Here are three – Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me (Psalm 55:5); The troubles of my heart are enlarged; bring me out of my distresses (Psalm 25:17); I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within my breast (Psalm 22:14). The Apostle Paul got to the end of his rope as well. He tells us of his “hanging on experience” in the opening of his second letter to the Corinthians – For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead (2 Corinthians 1:8-9). It is that last statement of Paul’s which is our application for today.
God never intended the Christian life to be easy, manageable, and pain-free. In fact, He promises us the opposite. The way of life would be hard – Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few (Matthew 7:13-14); overwhelming beyond our strength to handle – Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you” (2 Corinthians 12:8-9a); and with much suffering – For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake (Philippians 1:29). And why? To get us to the end of our ropes. We cannot know the sufficiency of Christ until we know the insufficiency of ourselves.
So, when you feel like you are at the end of your rope, don’t just cry out “Help, Lord” but also “Thank you, Lord, for now I will know You and Your grace better.”
PRAYER: “Father, help me see when I am at the end of rope that is where You want me so I will trust You completely.”
QUOTE: “We cannot know the sufficiency of Christ until we know the insufficiency of ourselves.”
Because of Him,
Pastor Jim