Out of the Mire - Trusting God in the Middle of TrialsSample

The Pit of Despair

Have you ever heard of Harlow’s “Pit of Despair?” It was an infamous experiment to test what would happen to baby monkeys if they were separated from their mothers. Dr. Harlow would put these poor monkeys in inverted-shaped pyramids. The pyramid had slippery sides that were difficult for the monkey to climb up. Even if he made it to the top, he had a short glimpse of the outside world before slipping back down into his pit of despair. The baby monkeys would give up after a day or so and huddle in the bottom of their pit, unwilling to eat or drink.

Harlow’s Pit of Despair is a terrible torture to baby monkeys, but it’s a suitable example of how we feel when we are trapped in a pit ourselves. Sometimes, when we finally get some footing and reach for the top, we slide back down again, right where we were before. Just like those baby monkeys, it is so easy to give up hope when everything seems against us.

In today’s passage, we see that Joseph was finally seeing hope for his future. Then we look at Genesis 39:20, and we see that Joseph is in yet another pit, except this time, it’s a prison. Joseph has now been betrayed twice: first by his brothers and by Potiphar and his wife. Just like the baby monkey, Joseph saw a glimpse of hope, but right when things started to look up, he fell right back into a pit of despair.

The good news is that Genesis 39:21 says, “But the Lord was with Joseph in prison and showed him His faithful love.” Isn’t that beautiful? Although Joseph has now been betrayed twice, God would never betray Joseph.

Do you think that God leaves you or betrays you when you go through trials?

Though you might not feel it, God is standing right there with you during your darkest moments. Just as God was there in that cell with Joseph, Scripture is clear that God is also with you, constantly showing you His faithful love.