We all have hopes and dreams about what our life should be and when it doesn’t turn out the way we had hoped, disappointment brings along a companion, his name is depression. Depression is like black smoke that drifts in hugging the floor so you won’t notice, then it is on you, surrounding you and the weight of it drags and pulls you into the depths of the pit.
The pit is the place Joseph found himself after his brothers argued about what to do with him, the prized son of Jacob and Rachael. He was a boy, only seventeen years old, and a shepherd with dreams of grandeur wearing a colorful coat given to him by his proud dad. I wondered if, after Joseph had gone through all the hell he suffered to get to the place of power, as second only to the Pharaoh, he ever thought of the terror of the pit, or the years spent in prison, after being accused of rape by the wife of his employer. Psalm 28:1 David cries out to God, “Don’t turn a deaf ear when I call you, GOD. If all I get from you is deafening silence, I’d be better off in the (pit) Black Hole.” He put his life and plea out there in front of God, the Great Judge, and then said “I’m letting you know what I need, calling out for help and lifting my arms toward your inner sanctum.” You can see he has surrendered himself up to God, knowing that He is merciful. By verses 6-7 we see his mood and spirit had totally changed! “Blessed be GOD—he heard me praying. He proved he’s on my side; I’ve thrown my lot in with him. Now I’m jumping for joy, and shouting and singing my thanks to him.” It’s up to us to keep moving our feet in the pit as dirt is being dumped in on top of us, so we may be able with the help of the Lord God, to climb out of the doldrums completely victorious!
Thinking of this two other people came to mind, first was Rahab the harlot whose decision to save the two spies from the Camp of the Israelites, saved her own life and the lives of all her family. That was the day she climbed out of her pit of sin and self-degradation and become the grandmother of Boaz, who was the grandfather of the Shepherd King, David, listed in the lineage of Joseph, the man chosen to be the earthly father and mentor of our Lord Jesus! Then there was the woman at the well. Jesus stopped and asked her to draw some water for Him. She questioned Him as to why He would ask her, and He replied that if she only knew whom it was she was speaking with, she would be the one requesting Living water so that she would never thirst again! He then told her all about the disappointments and mistakes of her life.
I don’t think that the woman at the well started out as a young girl hoping to have five husbands and then living with one to whom she was not married, yet her particular pit had put her in this bad circumstance, Jesus pulled her out of it that day.
King David, Ruth the wife of Boaz, Rahab, the Woman at the well, and Harolene, all got help because they asked for it.
Harolene.com 