It was in the wake of an adoption gone terribly wrong that I first found out about a spacious place. I dug into the Scriptures looking for hope while my world seemed to spin uncontrollably. I found 2 Samuel 22:20:
“He brought me out into a spacious place, he rescued me because he delighted in me.”
I so wanted to be rescued during that season. Even more, I wanted God to delight in me. I had done my best to follow His will, and it hadn’t turned out like I wanted it to. I knew that following Jesus didn’t mean everything would always be smooth, but this was a serious blow. A spacious place sounded like an inviting escape from my pain and disappointment, but I wasn’t really sure what that term meant.
Thanks goodness for study Bibles. Mine referenced three other passages where “a spacious place” was specifically mentioned:
Job 36:15-16 says, “But those who suffer he delivers in their suffering; he speaks to them in their affliction. He is wooing you from the jaws of distress to a spacious place, free from restriction, to the comfort of your table laden with choice food.”
Psalm 18:19 says, “He brought me into a spacious place, he rescued me because he delighted in me.”
Psalm 31:8 says, “You have not handed me over to the enemy but have set my feet in a spacious place.”
After reading all four passages, I did what we writer types always do when we think we are hearing from the Lord . . . I pulled out my dictionary and found the following definition:
1. vast or ample in extent
2. large or magnificent in scale
I also found that the Hebrew word ravach means “to breathe freely, to revive, to have ample room, to be refreshed.” What treasures God has hidden in His Word! I didn’t even know that I needed a spacious place, but God promised it to me long before my hopes for adoption went awry. Then He tenderly showed me His Truth at the time when my heart needed it most.
God led me into a spacious place by making space in my heart for healing. I wanted to hold on tightly to my hurt, but He wooed me to be open-handed. When my circumstances threated to drain my joy, He invited me to come drink of His living water and be refreshed.
I can tell you from experience that God did not leave me in a pit of pain. He rescued me. Are you feeling constrained by the pain of your circumstances? Are you facing a challenge that makes it feel like the walls are closing in?
Ask God to bring you into a spacious place. Look for reminders of His love for you and His hand on your life as He provides opportunities for you to breathe freely and have peace that is beyond description. Don’t hold on to your pain. Be open-handed and allow God to do the work by making room for Him in your heart. Let Him speak to you in your affliction so He can woo you from the jaws of distress.
“But those who suffer he delivers in their suffering; he speaks to them in their affliction. He is wooing you from the jaws of distress to a spacious place, free from restriction, to the comfort of your table laden with choice food” (Job 30:15-16).
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