Samson was dying of thirst. The mighty warrior who had just killed a thousand men with a donkey's jawbone was about to collapse for want of water. This difficulty was nothing like the battles he'd faced before. Getting a drink of water? That's nothing compared to facing down a thousand Philistines! But when thirst gripped him, that small present trouble felt heavier than all the great dangers God had just delivered him from.

Isn't this exactly how it goes with God's people? We experience some mighty deliverance, and then a tiny trouble knocks us flat. Samson slaughters a thousand Philistines, piles them up in heaps, and then nearly faints for lack of water! Jacob wrestles with God himself at Peniel, overcomes Omnipotence itself, and then limps away with a damaged hip! Strange, isn't it? There always seems to be a thorn after the triumph. As if the Lord must remind us how small we are, how helpless we are, to keep us within bounds.

Samson had boasted loudly: "I have killed a thousand men!" But that boastful throat quickly went dry with thirst, and suddenly the champion was on his knees in prayer. God has many ways of humbling his people.

Dear child of God, if you find yourself laid low after experiencing great mercy, you're in good company. When David finally took the throne of Israel, he said, "I am weak today, though anointed king." You should expect to feel weakest at the moment of your greatest triumph. If God has worked mighty deliverances for you in the past, your present difficulty is just like Samson's thirst. And the Lord will not let you faint. He will not let his uncircumcised enemies triumph over you.

The road of sorrow leads to heaven, but there are wells of refreshing water all along the way. So take heart, weary friend. Cheer yourself with Samson's prayer, and rest assured that God will deliver you soon.