Hi
We continue to reflect on Psalm 23 in today’s Holy Nougat
“Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me.” Psalms 23:4 NLT
The Hebrew children were pretty close to the Promised Land; yet it took roughly Forty years to get there. Wasn’t God with them? What happened to the ‘paths of Righteousness for His own name’s sake’ promise; was that a lie? I don’t think so. But we understand differently. Righteous or even righteousness doesn’t necessarily mean easy. And sometimes we undergo some serious Valleys of Shadows in order to get to righteousness.
The bigger question for us all is perhaps, ‘Can we withstand the journey through the darkest valley?’
It’s not a light question. The group of Hebrews who left Israel was not quite the group that entered Canaan. And that is a forever true principle. In their instance; it was so in the most literal sense. The elders didn’t make it because they succumbed to fear and expressed their doubts through rebellion against God. But the next generation made it.
In our instances, the principle is realized in the Jacob-Israel transformation. The Jacob who ran away from home was definitely not the one who reconciled with Esau some 20+ years later. Oh no! And it wasn’t only about a change of name or a broken hip. It was perhaps more about the change on the inside – his heart and mind were both transformed in the Valleys. So much so that after the last Valley experience (when he wrestled with God unawares), Jacob was able to see God in Esau rather than the beast he’d conjured in his mind.
All this to say that our darkest Valleys might actually be the sight of our greatest transformation. Moreover, when we stop focusing on our fears, and instead zero in on Who’s with us; we will find that God is with us – as promised and sometimes in those moments we can tangibly feel the presence of God. (And, if not; ask)
So yes, the paths of Righteousness sometimes take us through Valleys of Shadows. But we have the assurance that God is with us. Look within first of all, and receive God’s presence.
In Christ’s love and grace . . .
