New wells in low places

Adversity is a frequent visitor. She can he intrusive, appearing at the least convenient moments and staying longer than politeness allows. You and I have known the unwelcome one and wish for hardship’s last trespass to be her last. As we see it, adversity’s sole mission is to bring us to low spots. We cannot see above what appears to be insurmountable barriers. A chasm of hopelessness is fixed between today’s reality and a better future.

Pat and I have passed through many valleys in our journey together, and have been present with others in memorable low spots. We have several friends who have recently lost immediate family members. Several others are battling an array of cancers. The world’s economy has found a way negatively affect good, hardworking, honest, God-fearing people. And, those who treat Him with contempt and use his name with glib disdain often continue to thrive.

While rereading the Judges, I discovered something which refreshed and instructed my spirit. A delegation of 3000 Judeans, Samson’s fellow countrymen, had come to arrest him and deliver Samson to the Philistines. The Philistines were enraged because Samson had embarrassed them in the most creative case of arson in world history. He captured 300 foxes, tied them in pairs at their tails, set the foxes’ tails on fire and set them running. The loss of crops was devastating to the Philistine economy and food supply.

The 3000 Judeans, fearful and preoccupied with self-preservation, were willing to arrest a fellow Israeli to protect their interests. As the Israeli posse bound Samson and prepared to deliver him to their enemies, the Philistines approached. Samson snapped the ropes that bound him, grabbed the jawbone of a donkey and killed 1000 Philistines. You can read the whole story in Judges 15.

The deed done, Samson was very thirsty, and cried out to the Lord for water. Before the bodies of the conquered were buried, Samson was in despair for his life and feared he would die himself. His immediate need overwhelmed a correct perspective. When this happens, our view of God shrivels up and His power is reduced to less than enough than our need.
“Then God opened up the hollow place in Lehi, and water came out of it. When Samson drank, his strength returned and he revived. So the spring was called En Hakkore, and it is still there in Lehi.” (Judges 15:19)
At our lowest points, God digs deeper. We all experience moments of great thirst, severe challenge, and daunting despair. The victories of the past are meaningless when our throats are parched, our strength is spent. Then, God digs a well. The water we have never tasted is as life-sustaining as the manna and quail Israel ate in the wilderness. We drink, our thirst is quenched and our strength is restored! If you are in a low spot, thirsty, and anxious about the outcomes of the challenges before you, hold steady and the Lord will dig a well for you!