Lifted Up

He lifted me out of the slimy pit, 
    out of the mud and mire; 
he set my feet on a rock 
    and gave me a firm place to stand.

He put a new song in my mouth,
    a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear 
    and put their trust in the Lord.

[Ps 40:2-3]

We would spend our summer days hiking the fire trails in the backwoods of our childhood home. There was this one mucky area that always stayed wet. It was quite the challenge to get around it.

One time I got stuck right in it. I slowly sank in the thick, clay-like goo. Every time I thrashed about I sank deeper. The terror that came over me was like no other. Having watched one too many shows that featured quick-sand, I felt doomed and imagined the horror of being sucked in alive. After a fierce struggle, my brother finally freed me.

Have you ever felt so helplessly trapped? Overwhelmed by the fear that you might never find a way out?

Sin has put me in some pretty dark and desperate places. And I’ve thrashed around in some pretty slimy pits!

But I clearly remember praying verses from the psalms for deliverance and I’m here to tell you that the Lord answered those prayers in a mighty and merciful way.

Only Jesus can rescue completely and permanently from a pit.

“I, I am the Lord,
    and besides me there is no savior.”

[Is 43:11]

Only He has the power and the patience to pull us out inch by inch with healing and forgiveness in each tug.

And He not only pulls you out but He equips and empowers you to stay out of the pit.

Several years ago, a dear sister gave me a copy of Beth Moore’s “Get Out Of That Pit.” I read most of that book through tears. Tears of identifying joy—recognizing just what the Lord had done for me.

There is but one response once standing firmly in the light—free, in this great expanse of His love and deliverance. It is to sing a heartfelt hymn of thanksgiving. One that never ends.

If you find yourself in a pit, call out to Jesus. And know that there is no pit too deep…too dark…too dank for the Lord’s deliverance. And you, too, will sing a new song, one of answered prayer.

Hear the cries of those in the pit, Lord.  Give them strength to reach…grasp…sing.

                “He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, 

                   and he will deliver us. On him we have set

                   our hope that he will continue to deliver us,”

                                                        [2 Cor 1:10]

Tuesdays:
Livin the Life of Answered Prayer