Piercing the Darkness
We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 2 Corinthians 4:8–9
After a drill bit pierced the roof of the chamber in which 33 Chilean miners were trapped, things rapidly kicked into high gear for rescue workers above. Nutritional supplements, food packets, and medicines were sent down in small capsules called palomas (“doves,” like carrier pigeons); letters from relatives, along with Bibles and other requested items came next.
Now that the outside world knew the miners were all alive, the challenge would be to find a suitable way to drill a big enough hold down 2,300 feet to extract each miner. To accomplish the feat, Chilean mining experts led a team that included engineers from around the world—including NASA engineers and medical experts. Three different rescue holes were drilled, and the first reached the men on October 9. October 12—69 days after the cave-in—all 33 men were rescued. One after another, each of the miners was lifted to safety via a specially constructed capsule.
If you’ve ever suffered from mental fatigue or depression, you know how suffocating it can be. It can completely deplete a person—mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Hope is the “drill bit” the Holy Spirit uses to pierce through the darkness to reach the dark places of a wounded and weary soul. Though it may feel like you are alone, He is relentless in His love. 1 Corinthians 2:10 assures us that “the Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.”
At times we may be sitting in the darkness of depression or shame and it seems like God is not there—or that He is delayed in His response. But we have the assurance from His Word that He will incline and hear our cry. Tune your ear to the drill bit. It is coming. Help and hope are on the way.
Father, help me hold on until your hope arrives.