Psalm 23 continued…
Psalms 23:4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
The thing about valleys is that they are inevitable. Jesus told us: “In this world you will have trouble.” (John 16:33) Valleys are inevitable. We are all exposed to failure, frustration and fatigue. And all of us walk the valley of the shadow of death. We cannot avoid it.
Valleys are also unpredictable. They come suddenly. It may be with a phone call or a routine doctor appointment or a letter or email. Maybe one freak accident. They happen when you are not expecting them to happen.
The prophet Jeremiah said, “Disaster follows disaster; the whole land lies in ruins. In an instant my tents are destroyed, my shelter in a moment.” (Jeremiah 4:20) This is our experience. I was recently able to help with the tornado damage in Kentucky. None of the people there thought that they would be dealing with the devastation they had to deal with.
Valleys are also impartial. None of us will skate through life problem free. It doesn’t matter who you are or what occupation you are in. If you are breathing valleys will happen to you. Jesus said, “He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” (Matthew 5:45)
You will go through a valley. In fact, while you are reading this today, you may actually be in a valley right now. But it is important to remember:
Valleys are temporary. Our Psalm says, “even though I walk THROUGH the valley…” We don’t stay in the valley. The valley is a circumstance we come through. It may seem like a dead end but in reality it is more like a tunnel. It has a beginning and an end.
But the wonderful thing about temporary valleys is that they can bring about eternal joys when we respond to them correctly. We need to remember this…
Valleys are purposeful. The apostle Peter wrote: “In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith — of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire — may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.”
God’s goal for you and me is that we will become more like Christ. The way this happens, the way our faith is strengthened and the way our character is shaped and developed is by the difficult valleys we face. Even our Lord Christ, while on earth, went through many dark valleys. He was poverty stricken, he was lonely, often disappointed, maligned, misunderstood, and hated, persecuted and killed. He knew the valley of the shadow of death.
And He understands and know how we feel as we traverse that dark path too. So we all face these valleys. All of us. We need to remember as we go through them that God is with us there. He is close beside us. His rod is within arms length. But we forget that.
The prophet Isaiah said: “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior…Do not be afraid, for I am with you.” (Isaiah 43:2-5a)
He is with you, friend! You are not alone. However hard, dark or terrible this valley may be. You are not in it alone. And it will not last forever.
PRAY
Father, thank you for never abandoning your children!