Words spoken by us all: ‘It has been a struggle all my life’
By Dean Collins
As a former therapist, as a person who has done ministry in every job I have ever had (whether on college campuses, in nonprofit organizations, or in private and public companies), I have heard hundreds of people say, “It’s been a struggle all of my life…since I was a child… all through my career.” The words most often come from someone who has experienced some form of addiction or abuse in their own lives or in the communities or families where they were raised.
When you experience affliction for a long season it is hard to re-emerge without some scar tissue. The writer of Psalm 129 seems to have this in mind when he wrote, “Greatly have they afflicted me from my youth.” As the writer begins, we sense that his words are personal. But then it seems he is thinking about or maybe even journeying with others when he calls all of Israel to repeat the same words, “Greatly have they afflicted me from my youth.”
The suffering doesn’t win
The Jewish pilgrims traveling to Jerusalem could recall both personal suffering and community distress. But their song continued with “Yet they have not prevailed against me.”
From 400 years of bondage in Egypt and through 40 years of wandering in the wilderness on the way to the Promised Land, the stories told by those making their pilgrimage to Jerusalem brought hope. They knew their own suffering and they could recall their history of suffering. The writer of this psalm may have been reflecting on the Babylonian exile of his people. Some suffering was due to their sins. And much suffering was due to the oppression of others. But as quickly as they remembered, they reminded each other that never had their enemies prevailed against them. Likewise, our enemies have not won. We are here and we are marching to Zion.
Our afflictions are real. They often come with pain. The psalmist was graphic with descriptions of physical suffering. But the psalmist then recalls that the Lord is righteous and has cut the cords of the wicked. The bondage, the distress, and the wounds are real, but they do not last forever.
Our victory is secure
The apostle Paul would have likely quoted all of the psalms of ascent many times as he climbed the steps of the temple in Jerusalem. Paul was once a persecutor of the early church, but after his Damascus Road experience, he often found himself being pursued, imprisoned, and even physically harmed because of his faith in Jesus. In 2 Corinthians 4, Paul wrote these words that carry a message for us similar to what the psalmist expressed in Psalm 129:
“We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.”
Psalm 129 and Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians remind us that there will be times of difficulty. There will be moments and even months or years when we may feel forsaken. We may experience real suffering, but our sickness, our enemies, and our struggles will not prevail. We are not crushed, we are not forsaken, we are not destroyed. Our resurrected Savior has won the battle, and our victory is secure. We may not get through every struggle today, but we surrender our struggles to Jesus as an act of worship. Then he will turn them into blessings for someone now and see us through until we stand before him in eternity.
Psalm 129 ends with these words. They are for us today as well: “The blessing of the Lord be upon you! We bless you in the name of the Lord.”
Father, with the psalmist of old we declare that we have been afflicted in this life, but the enemy has not prevailed against us! We surrender our pain to you and ask as Paul asked that Jesus may be seen in us and through us. Accept our surrender of our pain as worship and praise to you. Be glorified in us today. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Your time with God’s Word
Psalm 129:1-8; 2 Corinthians 4:8-11 ESV
Photo by christopher lemercier on Unsplash
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