How God Can Use Your Pain and Struggles
For His Good with Brooke Ligertwood
In a recent interview with Family Life Radio, platinum recording artist and Grammy-award-winning songwriter, producer and worship leader Brooke Ligertwood shared the inspiration behind her song “Honey in the Rock.”
“So, ‘Honey in the Rock’ is actually a phrase from Psalm 81:16 where it says, ‘But I would feed you with the finest wheat. I would satisfy you with honey from the rock,’” Brooke explained (CEB).
Collaboration with her friends, Brandon Lake and Will Mitchell for the song, Brooke shares, “It turned out that both Brandon and I, separately, had come upon this phrase in Scripture and had been mulling it over. ‘Honey in the Rock’ was written that day.”
Now the cornerstone of their song, the words are a reminder that God’s Word is alive and active, speaking to our hearts in unique ways (Psalm 119:105).
Engaging with Scripture can lead to unexpected revelations and creative inspiration.
She reflects, “And it’s a song about the sweetness and suffering for those of us who are in Jesus,” echoing the words of the Apostle Paul in Romans 5:3-5, “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us” (NIV).
Suffering is not a dead-end but a pathway to growth, perseverance and hope. In Jesus, we find a unique kind of joy and sweetness, even in our most challenging times. Brooke continues, “One thing Pastor Tim Keller talks about is that only in Jesus, not only can we access sweetness and suffering, but do we become sweet in suffering,” Brooke shared.
Our relationship with Jesus transforms us, enabling us to become instruments of His love and grace. Our experiences, even the painful ones, can be used by God to comfort and support others. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4 NIV).
There’s honey in the rock, water in the stone
Manna on the ground, no matter where I go
I don’t need to worry now that I know
Everything I need You’ve got
There’s honey in the rock
Praying for a miracle
Thirsty for the living well
Only You can satisfy
Sweetness at the mercy seat
Now I’ve tasted, it’s not hard to see
Only You can satisfy
There’s honey in the rock
There’s honey in the rock
There’s honey in the rock
There’s honey in the rock
Yeah
The collaborative process behind “Honey in the Rock” exemplifies the value of community in our faith journey. Brooke, along with her friends Brandon Lake and Will Mitchell, discovered a shared inspiration from Scripture.
We are not meant to walk alone; fellow believers provide support, encouragement and even creative inspiration.
Embracing the journey with Jesus, the Rock is a lifelong process of growth, transformation and deepening our connection with God.
As Brooke beautifully puts it, “Those of us in a painful season might be able to access the sweetness and Jesus the rock, but that also, we might be sweet so that we might be a consolation to others when it’s time for them to walk through their own seasons.”
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