Feel Like Dirt? Guess What?

As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust. Psalm 103:13-14


The psalmist doesn’t choose flowery language to describe how we came about. He doesn’t go to “I am fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14). Instead he goes back to our basic element: “from [the ground] you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return” (Genesis 3:19). Boy, doesn’t that just make you feel like dirt?


Have you ever made anything out of dirt? A mud pie perhaps? I used to dig dirt and dam up the creek behind our trailer when I was young. (Yes, we lived in a trailer in Kansas -- tornado alley, Dorothy and Toto and all – we had faith). I never expected my mud dams to stand the test of time. I wasn’t presenting a danger to the trailer park. No one was destined to live in a houseboat any time soon.


Dirt gets wet and washes away. Dust lacks substance and blows with the wind (another Kansas reference, awesome). Not to make light of dust, but it really doesn’t amount to much. Oh, and we’re made of dust.


God didn’t build our bodies to last forever. He didn’t compose our being to stand up against every circumstance. He created a vessel that is fragile and flawed, a clay pot (2 Corinthians 4:7). We were not created to depend solely on ourselves and become “self-made.”


When we crack under pressure, God is not surprised. Life is more than we can take. But, God has compassion on us.


Parents will do anything for their children. Whether it’s my grandmother eating the neck and the tail of the chicken to give her brood of twelve the better parts or me sacrificially taking my children to Chuck E. Cheese’s, we want what’s best for our kids. Greater love hath no father than…


When our kids scrap their knees, we don’t tell them to “Deal with it.” We cleanse their wound and apply a bandage. We hold them and comfort them. We distract them with candy or soda (don’t tell their mom). We have compassion on our children.


Our Heavenly Father has compassion on us. He knows that we are facing more than we can deal with. Whether it’s our fault or not, God is moved by the things that cause us pain. He didn’t design us to withstand everything. He created us to live life with Him and to depend on His strength.


What are you facing today? Do you feel too weak to handle it? Have you tried time after time and the only result is more frustration? Well, you’re in good company. You are just as weak as everybody else. But, we have a Heavenly Father who knows what we lack and has compassion. Let Him help you today.


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