I waited patiently for the LORD;
And He inclined to me and heard my cry.
He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay,
And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm.
He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God;
Many will see and fear
And will trust in the LORD.
Psalm 40:1-3 (NASB)
Being a country boy hailing from the mining villages of Eastern Fife, surrounded with woodland and fields I have had my fair share of experiences with mud. But my worst trial by mud was in Western Fife when I was working on the construction of a new horticultural nursery. When you add torrential rain to a river valley you can be certain of lots of mud. That was what we faced on this job as we dug foundations for roads, paths, and polytunnels. Every morning was spent bailing out flooded trenches which was tiring work, wrenching our feet free on every step. Occasionally a shout for help would come from someone who was stuck, and required rescuing from the mire. Psalm 40 was already a precious scripture to me and this job gave me cause to meditate on it intimately.
I first encountered this psalm in a meaningful way in 1984 in the pages of “You, Me & Jesus” by Cliff Richard; a book that was instrumental in me coming to know Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. Our chosen verses today introduced me to the lifesaving work of God through Jesus my Redeemer; that He could and would rescue me from the mire of my life. It only required me to know I needed Him and only to call out in prayer, and await His rescue in His perfect timing. Being in the depths of trouble very often we can do nothing for ourselves. We may struggle but only find ourselves sinking deeper in trouble – very similar to being stuck in a miry trench and needing rescuing.
Dear reader, do you have a sinking feeling in your troubles? Father God will hear your prayer, and answer it in perfect time – pray and wait faithfully. He will pluck you out of the mire and put you on firm ground – on Christ the Solid Rock. When Father God rescues struggling souls it is obvious, and definitely a cause for rejoicing and sharing with others. The testimony of God at work in your life is more powerful and effective than any other form of sharing Good News; so go share how He pulled you out of the mud.
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Devotional Treasures
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