The End of the Rope
(Read Psalm 130)
Every morning before I read a single email, I spend quiet time in God’s word. One day this week, it began with Psalm 130, one of the seven Psalms collectively known as Songs of Ascents. The Psalm begins with a lament and ends with rays of hope that come from waiting for God. For some reason, the Psalm didn’t spiritually move me. I felt flat. It was either a lack of focus or a hardened heart that day. I was really disappointed with myself. Next, I went to read the day’s devotion.
Out of the depths I call to you, Lord!
Lord, listen to my voice;
let your ears be attentive
to my cry for help.
Psalm 130:1-2
The lament of Psalm 130 is familiar to anyone who has lived long enough to have experienced sorrow and pain and asked God for help. Many Psalms contain reassurance for despair, but this one asks for reassurance that is a result of despair from sin. The Psalmist wrote about coming from, “a deep place.” It’s a deep pit because it’s self-inflicted. Nothing is lonelier than the effects of our own sinful weakness. Said appropriately by comedian Oliver Hardy, “This is a fine mess you’ve gotten us into.”
A lot of people believe in coincidences. Serendipity. My wife loves that movie. When seemingly unrelated events in time collide forming a new path for everyone involved. Believers in Jesus Christ don’t strongly believe in random happenstances because that would remove God’s sovereignty. God plans and controls everything. The devotional I read that day was also not so coincidentally about waiting for God. Yep, Psalm 130. I was blown away. Another time in my life, I would have laughed and chalked it up as a happy accident. This time I thought wow, God is using me somehow with this message.
While all sins are equally offensive to God, my addiction to work is my biggest weakness. I would much rather spend time relaxing with family or friends but by the end of the week, it seems like working takes up most of my time and energy. Spending time playing with my 2 year-old granddaughter is one my favorite pasttimes. She is a bundle of happiness and energy and love wrapped in a mini package. I love to fish, play disc golf, paddleboard, and read. But I don’t. It’s a problem I’m trying to break. This destructive habit causes problems with my marriage, my family, and my health. When I call upon God to help me resist this temptation, I wait not with fingers crossed, but with confidence. My faith comes with the hope that God will somehow deliver me when I call upon Him. He doesn’t always answer me the way I expect, but God always answers.
I wait for the Lord; I wait
and put my hope in his word.
I wait for the Lord
more than watchmen for the morning—
more than watchmen for the morning.
Psalm 130:5-6
When sunk in a pit of despair the night can feel cold and endless, but as the dawn approaches, our darkness is swallowed up. The feelings we get as we’re waiting for the Lord is the hope that light brings. It’s the light each morning that evaporates the night watch. As I was re-reading Psalm 130, I couldn’t help but see the clear messianic promises embedded within. Out of our despair, we wait for the Lord. In our life, we wait for the celebration of Christ’s return. We watch in anticipation for this perfect light. Our watch may seem like forever, but Christ’s coming will finally obliterate the darkness.
Just today, I had to cancel a lunch date with my son that I had earlier promised. He works in an office with regular hours and structured time expectations. I work for myself and control my schedule — at least I think I do. Due to another migraine I experienced yesterday that put me way behind, I am playing catch up and didn’t have time to meet his narrow window for lunch. Somehow, I think these interruptions are God’s way of saying “stop,” “rest.”
I love what I do for a living and that’s a blessing. Not everyone can say that, and I am truly grateful for the opportunity of doing something that I really enjoy. I don’t love that this passion has become an idol in front of God, my family, my life. Psalm 130 is also considered a penitential psalm. These psalms express sorrow for sin and ask for God’s forgiveness. I’m reading the Bible cover to cover again. Isn’t it ironic that on one specific day, my Bible reading is the exact same narrative as a devotional book that was given to me as a Christmas present last year? Ironic? No. A statement? Perhaps.
We all experience the depth of pain, confusion, and sadness. It’s even worse when we know that the guilt in this condition comes from our sin. These depths can be hard to swim up from. Some won’t. For me, self-help is not going to be the answer to my distress.
Israel, put your hope in the Lord.
For there is faithful love with the Lord,
and with him is redemption in abundance.
And he will redeem Israel
from all its iniquities.
Psalm 130:7-8
Keeping our personal struggles private binds us to them. We think that keeping them in the dark puts them in a safe place for us to carry on with our lives. But what it really does, is connect us to them. It allows our burdens to pull us down to the depths of darkness. By opening up and turning to God with our cries we are taking them off our shoulders and trusting Him with our burdens. The psalmist encouraged Israel to go public with their prayers just as we are encouraged to make our personal struggles public with God. A relationship with God brings faithful love that comes with the promise of redemption.
The Psalms cover a lot of ground. Their words often provide healing for a shattered soul. This Psalm in particular, shows the fruit of God’s love for a time when we’re the lowest. It reassures us that God’s endless mercy will connect all that is broken. Psalm 130 ends with Israel’s redemption from all her sins. Is it also ironic that “Redeemer” is a name often given to Jesus? This psalm provides the hope that comes with the Redeemer’s promise, “I am making everything new!” Revelation 21:5
We put ourselves in holes. Most of my family believes that my chronic migraines are in part a result of stress and lack of sleep. It’s a vicious cycle that I alone am responsible for. The little bit of rope that can pull me out is there for me every single moment of my life. That rope is there for all of us. Do we go for it?
I know that I was meant to pay close attention to Psalm 130 this week. God basically hit me over the head with its message for a specific reason. Our sins will always find us out. As deep as we put them, they bubble up. Conquering sin is a skill. It comes with prayer, self-discipline, and faithful practice. I’ve heard from friends addicted to drugs or alcohol that while hitting rock bottom was a horrible place to be, it was the cornerstone of their healing. It’s somewhere they needed to be but not to stay.
Looking up from the damage of our sins, we can see how weak we are. We see that our sins not only hurt ourselves, but everyone around us. Our only way out is the rope that Christ extends down to us. Until Jesus returns, we will always be waiting for God. Waiting for Him for healing, wisdom, mending, and protection.
Is it just a coincidence that this week’s devotion is about a Psalm I had never paid much attention to before? God sees me in my despair. He knows when I will struggle before the conflict even appears to me. If it’s a coincidence, then there is no purpose behind God’s messages. They are random. On the other hand, when it’s God’s plans, hope is real. The rope is there to pull us out.
The end of the rope stops in the palm of God.
Dillon Burroughs
Key Application:
Read Psalm 130 a few times. It’s very short. See if you can identify any areas of sin that are trapping you in a deep dark well. Have you tried to remove them from your life? Sometimes self-help isn’t enough.
- Seek God where your own understanding leaves you flat.
- When something unusual or extraordinary happens, look deeper at it. Is God telling you something?
- When you’re in a dark place, pray to God for discernment. He might not fix that particular problem, but you will come to understand His plans for your perfection.
Where else in your life can you live out the teachings of Christ? Look for next week’s Devotion.