When Hope Runs Dry

“How long, O Lord, will I call for help,

And You will not hear?”

(Habakkuk 1:2)

Ever been here? Tired, weary, out of hope, tired of holding on. Friends are super helpful telling you to stand, have faith, sit, be still, keep going, the joy of the Lord is your strength. And you just want to smack them.  You don’t want to hope any longer, because it’s better to have no hope than constantly feel like it is being dashed as you wait and trust and nothing happens.

David understood that feeling.

“My heart is stricken and withered like grass,
So that I forget to eat my bread.
Because of the sound of my groaning
My bones cling to my skin.
I am like a pelican of the wilderness;
I am like an owl of the desert.
I lie awake,
And am like a sparrow alone on the housetop.”

(Psalm 102: 4-7)

I wasn’t sure if pelicans did live in the wilderness of Judea but, apparently, they do, at least for a short while. Great White pelicans use the lakes in Israel as a watering stop on their migratory path to Africa.

“The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, and strengthen your bones;

You shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.”

(Isaiah 58:11)

But the Lord brought David through just as He will bring you through. He will strengthen your bones, give you fresh water along the way and guide you safely to your destination. You will make it to your Africa. Just hold onto His Word.