FRIDAY
FEBRUARY 1

READ:
Psalm 23

Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me. 

Psalm 23:4

 

Mountains and Valleys
On a flight from Denver to Los Angeles, I marveled at the panoramic view of the Colorado Rockies capped with glistening white snow. The mountains stretched as far as I could see. But even more exciting to me were the landmarks I could pick out from 33,000 feet.

There was the long, narrow profile of Cheesman Lake near a guest ranch where I had worked during my college summers. Bison Peak marked the high point of a trail I had traveled many times during fall pack trips with friends. US Highway 285 wound over Kenosha Pass then dropped into the wide expanse of South Park. A few minutes later, I gazed down into the magnificent Black Canyon of the Gunnison River.

It occurred to me that my perspective from 6 miles up was meaningful because of the places I had been on the ground. It was the valleys that enhanced my view from the "mountaintop," and not the other way around.

One of the best-loved passages of Scripture is Psalm 23: "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not be in want" (v.1). "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" (v.4).

We embrace this "song of the valley" because that is where we live. While God may sometimes take us to the pinnacles of spiritual experience, these flights are always temporary, like my view from the "friendly skies." We don’t live on the mountaintops, we just visit. When we look down, we are reminded of God’s presence and His unfailing love to us at ground-level.

So what’s your altitude on this first day in February? Are you soaring because of the nearness and reality of Christ? Or are you slogging through the slush of difficult circumstances, wondering why God seems so far away?

We learn in the valleys to live and walk with the Shepherd who cares for us. When we look down from the next mountaintop, those valleys will be the most meaningful places we see. --DM

REFLECTION

  • What "valley" in my life has become a landmark in my walk with God? 
  • Why do I think we long for spiritual mountaintop experiences? 
  • How would I encourage a friend who had returned very excited from a Christian retreat and now says, "I just can’t keep the feeling"? 
The valleys give meaning to the mountaintops.



©2001 RBC Ministries—Grand Rapids, MI 49555