Rachel Whisman

She said it graciously, “You’re in the doldrums.” I hesitated because I thought she was speaking another language. Never had I ever heard that word, “Doldrums?” So I inquired, “What do you mean by doldrums?” Kindly, she shared, “Doldrums. It’s a nautical term used to describe the weather. It’s a part of the ocean where it is listless, inactive, dull, seemingly barren in calm waters. The wind barely moves the ship as if it were stagnant. Seemingly, nothing is happening.” 

Immediately, I wanted to raise my hand and shout out, “Yes!” because that word resonated deeply with what I was experiencing—a season where all is serene, no changes occurring, except my unmet desires thrashing against reality. I wanted movement in any direction, but it felt like there was an anchor at the bottom of the ocean floor that was keeping me buoyed in the same spot. I have been waiting, hoping, and longing for the Lord to give me movement, but His response was a gentle whisper, “No, or not yet,” and it stung like salt water in the eyes.

Hearing her say this, my thoughts went to my companions in scripture who I imagine endured likewise. Although experiences vary, endurance was forged in these listless areas. 

From Joseph, stuck in jail for years to decades on end. Hagar, despondent in the desert without a ray of hope. Moses, shepherding a flock of sheep day after day during his adult years, potentially thinking, “Is this it, Lord?” Elizabeth, pleading in prayer for a child through decades of infertility. All of these were refined by seasons that lagged and wore on them, waiting for a different answer from the Lord. 

While in the doldrums, what do you do? My friend continued to counsel me with this encouraging word: “When you know what is true, you run hard after it and don’t look back, entrusting yourself to the Lord that He will continue to take care of you.” That morning, what I had read in Ecclesiastes 5:19-20 tied in nicely. It states: 

“Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil- this is the gift of God. For he will not much remember the days of his life because God occupied him with joy in his heart.”

From the doldrums to the dejected allurements of this world that Solomon never found satisfying, he gave this simple wisdom: Enjoy. Accept. Rejoice. It was the truth that I needed to immerse myself in while stagnancy lurked nearby.

Enjoy the toil God has given. We have the freedom to enjoy it because our ultimate hope and satisfaction is from God and not the things. Yet, Solomon urges us to find enjoyment in them. It is from the Lord’s hand and to be received, whether it is painstaking or flat out boring. We do it all for the glory of God. (1 Cor. 10:31). 

Accept his lot. This one is a hard one for me right now. Sometimes in life, God is going to place you in seasons you don’t like, but He has you there for a reason. I can grumble and complain, which is sin, or I can obey and accept this lot with humility (James 4:6). You could pray: “Lord, I don’t understand why you have me here, but help me to trust you and your wisdom and love for me. You know what is best. Help me to care more about your glory in this and work with willing hands.” Acceptance is the root for humility to grow and faith to flourish.

Rejoice in his toil. God gave it; He is to be praised. It is toil nonetheless, but work that He has called you to do as of now. As Jim Elliot says, “Wherever you are, be all there.” However, if there is ingratitude, confess it: “Lord, I have been (bitter/resentful/angry/frustrated) with where you have me in life.” Ask for forgiveness, “Father, please forgive me of the way I have sinned against you by ______.” Then rejoice! Praise His name: “Father, thank you for forgiving me. Thank you that you know what you are doing, and I can entrust myself to your wisdom and care. Help me to praise you for you and the work that you have given me to do.” Rejoice in all that you get to do through this toil.

On the slow and still currents, the Lord reveals idols. In the silence, he is shaping us to become more like Christ. In solitude, He is spoiling your satisfactions to press you to know that Christ is supreme. When we genuinely enjoy, accept, and rejoice, this is a gift from God. Something that causes the watching world around to marvel at while someone is in the doldrums. The end of the verse ends with a promise that when we do these things, “God occupied him with joy in his heart.” Don’t you want that? I want it, and we can even in the midst of the doldrums of life. God is a never-ending supply of all that we need and want. When we run hard after the truth in Him, He will take care of us. 

“For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”

James 1:3-5 NLT