2 Corinthians 1:8
For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life: For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life:
The trouble in Asia pressed Paul and his companions beyond measure and beyond strength, with severe perplexity and discouragement until they despaired even of life. The danger joined outward peril to inward fear, for at Ephesus a fanatical mob raged fierce as wild beasts, so that Paul thought his useful work might be ending and that he might soon die for his faith. At the same time the pressure came from the heavy burden of caring for the churches, where false teachers sought to destroy Paul's influence among the churches he had established by turning believers against him with accusations and by replacing gospel truth with their own doctrines. God delivered him from that deadly peril, which gave him hope that his labors would continue, and even amid persecutions and discouragements he found consolation in Christ.
So any faithful worker for God may be pressed beyond strength and deeply discouraged, at times feeling life is not worth choosing, and such despair under heavy burdens and bitter disappointment over God's people is not new or strange. Being pressed out of measure above strength in proclaiming God's word can still include poverty and want to fainting for lack of bread, suffering heat and cold in travel from place to place, and long domestic affliction such as a husband becoming paralytic that brings renewed want even to despairing of life. Yet God sustains in the work, answers prayer by raising the afflicted to health again, and tells what to do.