Miry Depths, Deep Waters and Other Metaphors

…Reading Psalm 69 this morning:

¹ Save me, O God,
    for the waters have come up to my neck.
² I sink in the miry depths,
    where there is no foothold.
I have come into the deep waters;
    the floods engulf me.
³ I am worn out calling for help;
    my throat is parched.
My eyes fail,
    looking for my God…

…Reflecting on recent conversations… gents who are now unsafe to drive… the able mind slipping away to dementia… cancer treatment side-effects leading to physical disability… ongoing grieving following bereavement… the isolating power of depression. Friends who could sink in miry depths.

…Reflecting on times when I’ve been drowning, feeling isolated, my God seeming absent… I’ve learnt four lessons, illustrated by different metaphors:

The rock: I’ve appreciated good friends and family who’ve stuck by me when I’ve been through tough times. They’ve just been there – not necessarily saying or doing anything. I’ve seen love and loyalty, care and compassion, solid dependability, at times when I had nothing to give in return.  

The fire: The purifying fire burns away superficial and the trivial. I think that coming through difficulties has made me a better person. I’m less judgmental, more empathetic. I can’t say, ‘I know what you’re feeling’; I know their suffering’s personal. I do know, though, what it’s like to be drowning.

The comedy: In the classic comedy things go wrong, people are misunderstood, it looks as if it will end in disaster; somehow there’s always resolution and a happy ending. My experience, underpinned by my faith in a loving God, leads to a growing, certain hope that all will work out well in the end.

The Shepherd: God is my Shepherd, who cares for his foolish, wandering sheep. My faith in my Shepherd has grown through tough times in ways that wouldn’t have happened if life had always been easy and successful. Even in the darkest valleys when I can’t see other sheep, let alone the shepherd, I know that he’s there.