Drowning

Drowning.

Life can sure feel that way at times.

Like you’re barely keeping your head above the water.

Like you’re losing the strength to swim—to fight.

Like the water is starting to make its way into your lungs and you’re gasping for air.

Like you’re about to give up and you can only hope to float and not sink.

The Bible often uses the imagery of deep water to symbolize these extremely difficult situations.

Psalm 69 is a very profound example. Verses 1-3 (NLT) say: “Save me, O God, for the floodwaters are up to my neck. Deeper and deeper I sink into the mire; I can’t find a foothold. I am in deep water, and the floods overwhelm me. I am exhausted from crying for help; my throat is parched. My eyes are swollen with weeping, waiting for my God to help me.”

Wow. This really conveys sheer helplessness and desperation to be rescued. Yet as the Psalm goes on, it moves from utter despair to complete confidence in the Lord—from distress to deliverance. I find it so beautifully powerful and comforting to read—how the Bible doesn’t tell us that these feelings are bad or wrong, but instead demonstrates that they are a clear signal to seek the Lord.

Notice how David begins that passage by crying out for God to save him, and ends it by saying that he’s waiting for God to help him. That right there shows how his faith won’t let him give up, even with every painful word that was uttered in between. No matter how deep you are in the water, you’re never too deep for God to reach in and pull you out.