Psalms 23:4
4 Even though I walk
through the darkest valley,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
Dark valleys are to happen inevitably because in order to move from place A to place B, we must enter the unknown and that can create anxiety or be scary at times. But there is literally no way around it. The degree of darkness may differ from one journey to the next, but nonetheless, it will exist.
The journey begins by going from learning a new subject, to trying new food, to going from childhood to becoming an adult, to entering a relationship, starting a new job, joining a new team, going through a divorce, raising a child, attending a funeral of a loved one, moving locations, overcoming addictions, inventing a new gadget, starting a business, being promoted to a new position, etc.
We can make the journey more pleasant the more we trust God. We need to remember that there are two journey paths we can take. The journey we created, or the one God creates. When we choose the journey we created, we find ourselves trying to pray God into it, usually to fix it. At times, this journey could align with God’s will, but many times, it doesn’t so we begin to feel God’s silence. Then we increase the intensity of our prayers, hoping to awaken Him for He must be asleep or distracted.
Henry Blackaby, author of the book, Experiencing God, states common phrases differently, which I found to be profound. “The typical saying, we use is, ‘Just don’t stand there do something.’ He claims in our interaction with God, that God prefers the statement to read, “Just don’t do something, stand there!”
He references the fact that we are to be still enough to listen to God’s plan and then join Him on His journey not try to pray God into ours. The formula is not more intense prayer but more stillness in our prayer that we may be guided by God’s whisper.
Will Gods plan include peaks and valleys? Absolutely, for we still will enter the unknown. We still will be transformed by His sanctification. We still will be tested and challenged. The difference is we will be following Him who goes ahead of us, who holds our hand, who lifts us up and, at times, carries us so that we can reach his destination for us.
We will find pure joy!
James 1:2-4
Trials and Temptations
2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
When we get to the point of surrender, we too can say with confidence what David proclaimed, “Even when I walk through the darkest of valleys, I will fear no evil for you are with me and your rod and staff shall comfort me.”
Think of climbing to the top of Mount Everest with God as your guide, walking along the side of you. The quest will be one of your greatest challenges. The physical and emotional toll will be enormous, including pure anxiety and adrenaline. When you look at the size of the mountain, you tend to scale yourself in relation to it. It’s so big and you’re so small. Yet, at that moment, God grabs your hand and says, “Let’s go” and starts the climb. He looks over at you and sees your uncertainty, anxiousness, and fear. He squeezes your hand, winks at you and says, “Don’t worry my child, I was the one who created the mountain, so I know the pathway to the top. Relax and enjoy the journey, I got this!”
Just a Thought…
