Life Is The Pits!

Sometimes…..life can be the pits! What a pitiful place to find yourself when you land in “the pits”! We have all been there at some time or another and if we are honest with ourselves, it was not a pleasant experience!

Truly life was the pits for Joseph because his own loved ones despised him enough to attempt to get rid of him. Later on, when he was minding his own business, a woman who wanted to get even, tried to trap him in an immoral situation and he had to flee. Life was not pleasant for Joseph. Even King David spent time in the pits!

Psalm 40:2, “He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.”

It must have been like a living death to be always chased and hunted down like an animal by King Saul. David knew what the pits were like. He deeply lamented his son Absalom’s rebellion and subsequent death. Sometimes the people closest to us can cause the deepest wound in our spirit and bring about the harshest emotional hurt. These situations can become the open door to….the pits! Entering into that state is truly no place for a blood bought child of God.

The hardest, most soul anguishing situations of this life could be used by God to mold us into vessels to honor, as in Joseph’s case, if we would just avoid taking up permanent residence in the pity pit. You are not the first person to ever be misunderstood or mistreated. Do you want to be permanently disabled for the Lord by your fiery trial or would you prefer to work through the “pit time” in your life and come out of it spiritually well-adjusted and able to help others?

Here are a few things that I have learned from the pit times of my life. I would never have made it out of the pit if it had not been for the Lord. That is the secret of survival! Your faith in the LORD must be greater than your desire to get even or to protect your own self. Here is what I learned:

1. Cry if you need to…but just for a time and never in self-pity. Just putting on a stiff upper lip will only cause the wound to open again later. Tears are a language that our God understands! You can always cry on His shoulder.

2. Pour your grief out on the Lord. Let Him know how you are feeling. Allow yourself to talk to someone who is spiritually strong and dear to you. Sometimes we need another’s faith and strength to encourage us. Let them steer you to right thinking about your situation. Don’t begrudge their input.

3. Recognize God’s face in the person who has hurt you. Believe Romans 8:28. Remind yourself that God makes NO mistakes. This trial did not take Him by surprise and He obviously has something for you to learn from it. Remember that God sent Joseph to Egypt and used the people who mishandled Joseph for His plan! Psalm 105:17-19 “He sent a man before them, even Joseph, who was sold for a servant: Whose feet they hurt with fetters: he was laid in iron: Until the time that his word came: the word of the LORD tried him.”

4. Don’t pull away from people in order to protect your heart from further hurts. Reach out and be a help to others….even when you are hurting.

5. Stay close to your Abba Father. Talk to Him…moment by moment. Lean on Him. Cling to Him and listen to Him through the comfort of His Word. Don’t allow yourself to wallow in self pity. That is a clear evidence of a lack of faith and will be a sure sign of resignation to the pits.

6. Love the one who hurt you. A spiritually minded woman will heed the warning in Luke 6:27-35, “But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you, Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you. And unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek offer also the other: and him that taketh away thy cloke forbid not to take thy coat again. And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise. For if ye love them which love you what thank have ye? For sinners also love those that love them. And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? For sinners also do even the same. And if ye lend to them of whom ye hope to receive, what thank have ye? For sinners Also lend to sinners, to receive as much again. But love ye your enemies, and do Good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: …”

If your life is all about you….you might as well select a permanent address in the pity pit, for that is where you will find yourself most of the time. It is so important that we learn life lessons from the hurts and pain that God allows to come our way. Let it make you sensitive so that you don’t repeat the wound on others.

Work diligently with the LORD to keep a forgiving heart….It will keep you free from the pity pit!