Some thoughts on valleys...
I've been thinking about spiritual valleys lately. I was listening to Caedmon's Call today (big surprise) and one line in their song "Valleys Fill First" really caught my attention. It said "so I'll stay in this valley/if it takes 40 years." That got me thinking about some other songs with that same concept. Ginny Owens sings, "I will go through the valley/if You want me to." (Really, the whole song "If You Want Me To" is fantastic). In "The Valley Song," Jars of Clay says, "I will sing of Your mercy/That leads me through valleys of sorrow/To rivers of joy."
The Bible says that Jesus was "overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death." (Mark 13:43). If that doesn't sound like a valley, I don't know what does. Some people say that spiritual valleys are a result of a lack of faith. To them, I say...well, I won't put it here. ;) Let's just say I think it's a bunch of crap.
I've experienced my share of valleys...they're not fun, but God uses them in our lives. I think that they can be (but are not always) the result of unconfessed sin in our lives. If that's not the issue...then you just gotta keep following God, trusting that He knows where He is leading you through this time and that it will turn out for your good. "I will walk by faith/even when I cannot see/because this broken road/prepares Your will for me." (Jeremy Camp--lost his first wife to cancer before he was 25.)
Hebrews 11:1 says "now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." It's in times of spiritual dryness that we need to walk by faith. Psalms 62:8b says "pour out your hearts to him." We're to do that not only when times are good, but when life sucks and you feel like God's not there. It's not easy or fun to keep at it when you don't see any results, you feel like you're talking to a wall and wonder if there's a point to it. However, God has promised amazing things for us (1 Cor. 2:9)...we must patiently walk by faith...through the highs and lows of life...someday, we'll see Him, face to face
and it'll be worth it
all.
The Bible says that Jesus was "overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death." (Mark 13:43). If that doesn't sound like a valley, I don't know what does. Some people say that spiritual valleys are a result of a lack of faith. To them, I say...well, I won't put it here. ;) Let's just say I think it's a bunch of crap.
I've experienced my share of valleys...they're not fun, but God uses them in our lives. I think that they can be (but are not always) the result of unconfessed sin in our lives. If that's not the issue...then you just gotta keep following God, trusting that He knows where He is leading you through this time and that it will turn out for your good. "I will walk by faith/even when I cannot see/because this broken road/prepares Your will for me." (Jeremy Camp--lost his first wife to cancer before he was 25.)
Hebrews 11:1 says "now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." It's in times of spiritual dryness that we need to walk by faith. Psalms 62:8b says "pour out your hearts to him." We're to do that not only when times are good, but when life sucks and you feel like God's not there. It's not easy or fun to keep at it when you don't see any results, you feel like you're talking to a wall and wonder if there's a point to it. However, God has promised amazing things for us (1 Cor. 2:9)...we must patiently walk by faith...through the highs and lows of life...someday, we'll see Him, face to face
and it'll be worth it
all.
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