"So they took Jeremiah and put him into the cistern of Malkijah, the king's son, which was in the courtyard of the guard. They lowered Jeremiah by ropes into the cistern; it had no water in it, only mud, and Jeremiah sank down into the mud."--Jeremiah 38:6

Ever felt like you have be stuck in the mud? Lowered into a waterless, mud filled cistern? I guarantee you that Jeremiah feels like you did. The only difference was, he was actually in a cistern that was full of mud.

So why was he there? Some people didn't like that Jeremiah was telling the Israelites that everyone who stays in the city of Jerusalem will be killed when Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians came to destroy the city. So they decided to take matters into their own hands and shut the outspoken prophet up.

So they lowered him into a cistern that was full of mud. And there stood Jeremiah, stuck in the mud. Sometimes I feel like I'm stuck in the mud. The mud of life. Deadlines, projects, sermons, and activities. Committees, meetings, visitation, and church. Life comes at me and has a way of pulling me down, and before I know it, I'm standing waist deep in the mud of life.

And before I know it, I can't move. My legs hurt, my body is tired of moving and all I want to do is stop and rest, even though all of the things need to get done by yesterday. All I can do is call out to God and ask for help. How did I get myself in this situation?

Are you in the mud of life? Has life gotten you down so much that you are stuck in waist deep mud? How did you get in that situation? You probably got there the same way I did. You let satan and his friends lower you down into the cistern full of mud.

God wants a relationship with us. He is so excited about spending time with us that He gently prods us over and over until we give in, or totally give up. But giving up is for sissy's. Who's every been a basketball team that said, "Alright guys, this is the big game, let's go out and blow it!" I sure haven't been on a team like that. God doesn't want us to give up and so He prods us.

So start that conversation with Him. Just call on His name and start reading the Bible, a devotional book, spend time in prayer. Trust me, once you start spending time with Him, things tend to work out for the better. Sure, there will still be bumps in the road, you'll still walk through some mud, but with God helping you through, it's easier to see the dry land on the other side. So go head, try Him out.