It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees. – Psalm 119:71
Life has a way of knocking us down sometimes, doesn’t it? When things get tough, it’s easy to feel like we’re stuck in a mess we can’t get out of. But Psalm 119:71 tells us something powerful: those hard times, as rough as they are, can actually be a gift. They push us to lean into God’s Word and discover His way of doing things. Honestly, it’s often in the struggle that we figure out God has a purpose for our pain.
Think about the story Jesus told about the Prodigal Son in Luke 15. This young guy thought he had life all figured out. He grabbed his dad’s money, left home, and partied hard. Freedom…. freedom from responsibility, freedom from rules, free to live life on his own terms. But when the cash ran dry and he ended up broke – working for a farmer and feeding pigs just to survive – reality hit him like a ton of bricks. In that low moment, he finally “came to his senses” and realized he needed to go back to his father (Luke 15:17). That tough spot was what brought him home to open arms and a fresh start.
I bet you’ve had moments like that, right? Times when life didn’t go as planned and you hit a wall. Maybe it was losing a job, or losing someone you loved, or a health scare, or a relationship that was falling apart. It could be lots of things. And those moments are real and they hurt. But guess what – they also wake us up. They show us that trying to run the show on our own doesn’t work out so well. Like Martin Luther said, “I never knew the meaning of God’s Word until I came into affliction.” Man… isn’t that the truth?! When things are falling apart, we’re left with no other choice but to confront the emptiness of living apart from God’s truth. It’s in these darkest moments when the light of Scripture seems to shine the brightest for us.
Psalm 119:71 reminds us that affliction can be a gift in disguise. The psalmist doesn’t curse his suffering. Instead, he sees it as a teacher, guiding him to treasure God’s decrees. When we’re hurting, we’re more likely to open our Bibles, to pray more earnestly, and to seek God’s face. And in those moments, we discover that His Word is not just a collection of rules – it’s a lifeline, a source of hope and a guide to true joy.
So friend, if you’re walking through a season of affliction today, don’t despair. God is not absent, He’s at work. Your pain isn’t the end of the story – it’s a chapter God is using to draw you closer to Him. Take time to sit with His Word. Let Him speak to your heart. Like the Prodigal, let your suffering lead you back to the Father’s warm embrace, where you’ll find grace, restoration, and purpose for your life.
“When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
the rivers of sorrow shall not overflow;
for I will be near thee, thy troubles to bless,
and sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.”
~ “How Firm a Foundation” by Robert Keen (1787)
Former Blackout Artist 