Editor's note: Enjoy today's devotion from What to Do in a Valley by Jabin Chavez.
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Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for You are close beside me. — Psalm 23:4 NLT
In life, and in faith, we all experience both mountain highs and valley lows.
Times on the mountains are when things are going your way. You’ve got money in the bank, you’re dating your dreamboat, you just bought the car you always wanted, or you moved to the right zip code. If you’re there now, then ahh. If not, remember what it felt like? Life is fun, God is good, the future is bright.
Mountaintops are awesome, and we need them now and then just to catch our breath. But we can’t stay on the peaks forever. Life moves on—and often drags us down with it. Then we find ourselves in another valley.
Maybe you broke up with that belle or beau of your dreams. Or you crashed the car you always wanted. Maybe your marriage is going through rough times. Or you just got a health diagnosis that has shattered your world.
As long as you’re walking this planet, you’re going to go through valleys. They are inevitable—like death, taxes, and slow drivers in the fast lane.
In the Old Testament, when Israel was about to enter the promised land, God told them,
The land you will soon take over is a land of hills and valleys. — Deuteronomy 11:11
Although he was speaking literally—the Israelites were entering a new land with these geographical elements—that statement is also true metaphorically for us today. God has a promised land for you to step into, but it’s not all flat and easy and risk-free. Getting there takes a fight. It requires patience and grit. We’ll hits some highs, but we’ll meet some lows too—some difficult, scary, frustrating, and discouraging ones.
Let’s settle this right now in our hearts: There is no such thing as a valley-free life. Following God doesn’t mean you get to hang out on mountaintops all the time. You will encounter enemies and obstacles. There will be surprises and disappointments. You’ll get a lot of good news, but you’ll get your fair share of bad news too.
Sometimes we think, If I just read more of the Bible, or pray more passionately, or serve God a few more hours a week, or have enough faith, then I’ll never go through another trial. I’ll just float through life on a puffy cloud of happy thoughts.
But that’s not the picture of life we get in Scripture. We love to quote Romans 8:37 (NIV), about how we are “more than conquerors,” but being “more” means we have to conquer something first.
Rather than wishing that our experience would align with our idealized view of what “should” happen, we would do well to align our expectations with what will happen. And valleys will happen. That doesn’t mean you lack faith—it means you’re making progress. Picking your way through valleys is a normal, inevitable part of following Jesus.
Of course, in valley moments, it’s easy to yearn for the mountaintops. We want to get out of here, where everything is dark, exhausting, and uncertain. We want God to send a divine helicopter to airlift us away from our problems and carry us to a safe, calm place with a beautiful view—and preferably a cozy coffee shop nearby.
Yet I’m sure you’ve discovered, as I have, that God often doesn’t answer our “get me out of here” prayers quickly or dramatically. Instead of pulling us from the valley, He walks with us through it.
David wrote about what is probably the most famous “valley” in Scripture in Psalm 23, as quoted above. Notice that he didn’t get to take a detour around his scariest moments. He didn’t figure out how to soar over them. He couldn’t turn around and run from them, back to safer territory. He had to walk through them.
When you read the book of Psalms, much of which was written by David, you get a glimpse of just how intense and emotional these circumstances and seasons were for him. David knew what it felt like to go through valleys.
If dark valleys are inevitable and if going through them is the only way out, that brings us to a vital question: What do we do in a valley?
For starters, we cry out to the only One who can strengthen, sustain, and encourage us as we face our lowest points. The Lord Jesus is more than able to turn our valleys into blessings and our losses into gain. He is faithful to bring us out stronger, more content, and more mature on the other side of whatever we go through.
In addition, we remember that the valley is not our dwelling place; it’s only a waypoint, and God will take us beyond it. We lean on His strength and the hope that He provides. We seek Him in prayer and persist when answers seem absent or delayed. We dive into the Scriptures and anchor our souls in their truth. We also rely on our “circle” of brothers and sisters in Christ to love, cheer, encourage, and pray for us. We let go of our desire to rush through to the other side, and we align our minds and hearts with God’s perfect pace. We look for the lessons He wants us to learn, while also staying open and ready for the miracles He will work along the way.
If you are in a valley right now, take heart: You will get to the other side. The God of the highs, the lows, and everything in between will see that you do.
God, thank You for the reminder that You are with me both on the mountains and in the valleys. Please deepen my trust and renew my hope in this season. Amen.
Excerpted with permission from What to Do in a Valley by Jabin Chavez.
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Your Turn
Are you in a valley? Hang on and keep going with Jesus! Are you on the mountain top? Rejoice and praise Jesus! No matter where you are today, God is with you and will never leave you. ~ Devotionals Daily