The Dangers of Dire Straits

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I was astonished to see how long this thought has been brewing in my mind and heart! I started a new blog post just now called "The Dangers of Dire Straits," and after I typed the words in the "title" line, it hit me, wait! Didn't I already start a blog post by this name? I started skimming down through my published and draft posts, and sure enough! There it was! A draft showing I worked on a devotional with this very title on 3/5/2024 at 11:56 PM! That is how long God has been dealing with me about this! 

Several years ago, I spoke to a minister mentor and told him God sometimes poured multiple thoughts into my heart, simultaneously, and I hardly knew when to share what. It's like I thought if I waited too long, the truths would go to waste. He replied, "Cheryl, the Word of God won't spoil." Oh, how that comforted me then and multiple times since then when God has brought his words back to my mind.

God is not in a hurry. He knows when something is supposed to be said, and even when life gets in the way, with multiple distractions and postponements, and a particular message from God gets put on the back burner, the Word of God will not spoil. The longer it sits on the back burner, the more it stews and marinates, and the "flavors" mingle, so the end product is even better than the original thoughts!

SO, here I am, 16 months later, still thinking about this subject. I pray God will deliver it in the way He sees best and that I can deliver this burden on my heart today. I haven't published a true-blue devotional post here in a very long time, due to working on book projects and many other reasons. I hope this will bless whoever needs to hear it.

In Dire Straits ~ in a very bad or difficult situation

Have you ever been there? In dire straits? A Red Sea in front of you and the enemy's hot breath on the back of your neck? An impassable obstacle. An impossible situation. An unfixable circumstance. An unavoidable crossroads. An urgent decision.

Dire straits are perilous because they cause us to make rash choices and misguided judgments, and do unwise things that we will forever regret. When we feel the desperation that accompanies dire straits, panic ensues. Human reasoning takes over. Anxiety overwhelms. We feel a sense of pressure that continually increases to the point of combustion. Everything in us screams, "Do something! Stop sitting here waiting on God to move. Get up and fix this. Does God not see how bad things are becoming? Does He not know what I am going through? I can't take anymore!"  

When we are in dire straits, it takes everything within us not to get ahead of God.

I think often of Joshua 3:1-4.

"And Joshua rose early in the morning; and they removed from Shittim, and came to Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they passed over. And it came to pass after three days, that the officers went through the host; And they commanded the people, saying, 'When ye see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then ye shall remove from your place, and go after it. Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure: come not near unto it, that ye may know the way by which ye must go: for ye have not passed this way heretofore.'"

When we are in dire straits, we need to remember Joshua 3:1-4. Whether we think God is seeing our situation or not, the fact is He is seeing it. He doesn't miss anything that is happening in our lives. He sees the path in front of us all the way to the day and time of our final breath on earth. Nothing surprises Him. 

God sees our end from our beginning, but we have never passed this way before. We can only see what we can see. We don't know what is up around the bend or what He may be protecting us from. He doesn't want us to rush in, less than "two thousand cubits," and He doesn't want us to lag behind more than "two thousand cubits." When "the ark" is standing still, He wants us to stand still. When "the ark" moves, He wants us to move, lockstep, following at that safe distance where we aren't rushing ahead of Him and we are not lingering too far behind to see which direction He is moving and going. 

One of the most impactful "dire straits" stories I can think of in the Bible is found in Genesis 16. 

Abraham's wife, Sarah, was in dire straits. She desperately longed for a baby of her own, but her womb was barren. She was infertile, physically unable to conceive a child. The most astonishing part of this story is that God had promised Abraham a son. Sarah knew this. But God wasn't moving fast enough for her. The deafening, incessant echo of her ticking biological clock evoked an unquenchable pressure within her. So instead of believing in the promise God made to her husband and waiting for Him to fulfill that promise in His perfect timing, she decided to take matters into her own hands and concoct a plan of her own.

She orchestrated for her Egyptian servant to have a child by her husband! The profound advantage of hindsight helps us see the magnitude of the absurd irrationality of such a step "ahead of the ark," but dire straits cause otherwise rational people to make nonsensical decisions and take illogical steps in the wrong direction. Could she have even imagined the perpetual rivalry and infighting such an imprudent, ill-considered decision would cause? Was she thinking of anyone other than herself and immediate gratification? 

When in dire straits, we absolutely cannot trust our own instincts. We dare not! Doing that will cause us to speak words we wish we could take back, send emails we wish we could unsend, and make ill-considered moves that adversely affect not only us, but the people who love us most and future generations.

Sometimes dire straits happen because we feel pressured by what the world around us is doing and the "norms" that are expected of us. If this is what is causing you to feel this sort of pressure, remember these things:

1. Societal norms do not define who we are in Christ Jesus. God does. 

"According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love: having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the beloved." Ephesians 1:4-6

"For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby He is able even to subdue all things unto Himself." Philippians 3:20,21

2. We don't march to this world's drumbeat. We march to His.

"For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body, according to the working whereby He is able even to subdue all things unto Himself." Philippians 3:20-21

"Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world." I John 4:4

3. We don't have to do what this unGodly culture dictates—choice is powerful, and the choice is ours. 

"For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ." I Corinthians 2:16

"And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." Romans 12:2

"For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith." I John 5:4

4. We are a peculiar people, set apart by Him, to be different and take the opposite, less-traveled path. 

"But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light: which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy." I Peter 2:9-10

5. Following Jesus will always lead us to do what is counter-cultural. 

"I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me." Galatians 2:20

"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." Ephesians 6:12

6. His way has always flown in the face of what this evil world believes and demands. 

"For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." 2 Corinthians 5:21

"Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began." 2 Timothy 1:9

"Therefore we are buried with Him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life." Romans 6:4

7. We are in this world, but not of this world. We aren't supposed to fit in or conform. 

"If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you." John 15:19

"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." 2 Corinthians 5:17

"Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God." 1 Corinthians 2:12

"And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have My joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them Thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world." John 17:13-16

8. Don't allow what anyone says, other than Jesus, drive you or your decisions.

"And ye are complete in Him, which is the head of all principality and power." Colossians 2:10

"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." Ephesians 2:10

9. They don't own us; He does. 

"By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." Hebrews 10:10

10. They will not determine our eternal destination. He will.

"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad." 2 Corinthians 5:10

Some other things to remember about dire straits—

1. While dire straits are absolutely real, legitimate, and an inevitable part of life, sometimes the enemy can deceive us into believing we are in dire straits when, in actuality, things are nowhere near that bad. During those times, satan is always trying to convince us that since things are so dire, we need to hurry and do something. When we act on those impulses, we always live to regret it. 

2. Dire straits are also sometimes amplified by hormonal fluctuations and can be exaggerated by imagination, evil surmising, and thought rumination. Do not trust yourself in those times. Be still and wait. Don't make decisions, send emails, make phone calls, or act on what you are feeling until you have taken time to pray and are able to get your emotions under control. 

When you are feeling that kind of pressure, remember these things—

1. When the pressure and "dire straits" panic is not based on fact, but on fear, cast it down. It isn't real. Don't succumb to it. Mom always told me that imagination is the biggest nation in the world. 

"For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds; casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ." 2 Corinthians 10:3-5

2. After you have cast down imaginations and brought every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, replace those imaginations and thoughts with the things we are told to think about in Philippians 4:8. "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." These are the things on which to ruminate!

3. Get enough sleep. When I am tired, things come in on me far worse than usual, and I get beside myself and feel overwhelmed. Throughout our 37+ years of marriage, Kevin has told me time and again, "Honey, you will feel better in the morning." He is always right. Sleep has a profound impact on both the body and mind, and just as God's mercies are new every morning, a rested mind feels fresh and energized.

When you feel the closing-in pressure of dire straits, turn to Jesus and ask Him to step into your storm as He did that night for His disciples on the Galilee. He is still in control, regardless how desperate and dire our "straits" may be. I leave you with a song that I love and has been such a comfort to me so many times. I pray it will be to you, too. 

I am praying for each person who will ever read these words. Whatever you are going through today, He knows. He cares. He is holding you right now. "The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms." Deuteronomy 33:27