Walking Through the ValleysSample

If you are a frequent flyer, you know that a direct flight is way better than a connection. Recently, I visited my mom who currently lives in south Alabama. The closest airport to her is in Panama City, Florida. Do you know what that means? Options for direct flights are limited. To see my mom, I flew from Denver to Houston to Panama City. Not terrible, but not ideal. On the way home, my flight got canceled. The next flight option would not get me home for four days. I love my mom, but I was ready to be home and see my family. The only alternative was a flight out of Pensacola the following day. Choosing that option, my mom and I drove two hours to Pensacola, stayed the night, and then I boarded a direct flight to Denver.

I know I am not alone in having a crazy travel story. If you have ever been stranded, you know what it’s like to scramble to find your way home. This often mirrors our internal world. So often in life, we want a direct flight to our destination. We don’t want to wait. We don’t want to be re-routed or to have to face the hassle of connections and delays. But life doesn’t work like that. And I have come to find that even in dire situations and painful seasons, God cares deeply about us and the journey we are on.

Sometimes His perfect plan for our lives means connections and delays which better prepare us for the destination. Sometimes this means we enter the valley. We can’t rush through these seasons. We can’t look for a direct flight out of them— even when it rocks our entire world.

The reality is we don’t like going through difficulties and painful life experiences. Seriously, who does? I am encouraged today in how James leads us into thinking about our troubles.

FAITH UNDER PRESSURE

2-4 Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.

James 1:2-4 (The Message)

These verses—in light of grief, loss, or betrayal—seem absurd. My first thought when I hear that passage is that experiencing troubles is not a gift. We perceive gifts differently than God does. His priority isn’t centered on our instant gratification or immediate benefits. He will always be more interested in growing, teaching, and preparing us for His purposes in our life. His gifts include taking circumstances influenced by the brokenness of the world and transforming them by building our character to make us more like Jesus.

Think about it, what is the opposite of patience? It is impatience. When we select this mindset, we take matters into our own hands and make our escape plan. Our goal is to create a way out of a trial as fast as we can. When we do that, we disregard the big picture in which God is doing something more.

In The Valley Growth Questions

1. What is a current valley you are facing right now?
2. Have you shown impatience in your valley? If so, how?
3. Read James 1:2-4. What speaks to you in this passage?

Spend some time seeking the Lord in prayer right now. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you areas to develop patience. When finished, write down some areas you can thank God for in your life despite your circumstances and valleys.