Sometimes it’s dark (very)… you can’t see anything. And I’ve already written to you several times… that sometimes I only see darkness. Yes, and we usually plan differently, right? Neither you nor I want it to be dark. And yet the Lord has a purpose…you thought that everything that sometimes happens and what you didn’t want is a conspiracy. But it does not mean that He has left you… look differently… maybe it is proof that that He is with you.
„Yea, 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.”
Psalm 23:4 (NKJV)
How can you see how much you trust and believe Him? How will you become a stable, strong, mature man of God, a man of established character, building on a solid foundation? Neither you nor I will become such people if in our lives we want to be only students, perfectly knowing the theory of being a servant and a follower… and that is why sometimes it is very dark.
When you walk through the darkness…you just can’t see anything, my friend. And if you can’t see anything, you need something (Someone) to guide you so you don’t fall. When you walk among shadows, and sometimes they are even „shadows of death”, you need something (Someone) that will give you self-confidence and inner peace. You need Someone who will give you the unshakable awareness that you are not alone… even though you can’t see Him with your own eyes, you don’t feel His physical touch, you don’t smell His scent. YOU NEED TO BELIEVE AND TRUST. And we won’t learn this in the laboratory.
Rod and staff – that’s why we need TO SEE NOTHING
He is our Shepherd, that’s why he has a shepherd’s ROD that he uses to lead the flock. His ROD is His love, care and devotion to the sheep. He is committed to us. He knows each of us by name. He leaves the entire flock to find one sheep that is lost. One sheep is worth the rest to Him…and the remaining sheep are worth one to Him. He is the best Shepherd. He gave his life for the sheep.
He’s our leader, that’s why he has a STAFF. His STAFF means that he guides us, protects us, and is an example of Someone we want to follow. It is our strength in difficult moments, it is a reliable rescue when we no longer expect it. For His own sake, He guides us in every situation… even when we think we are alone.
In the dark we lose sight of everything around us, when we are afraid we can only think about fear. That’s how it is. And then we must „transcend” ourselves. We must grasp onto something that is beyond our human understanding, beyond our perspective. And this is how we learn faith and trust. This is how we become strong and determined. When we let go of what is human and grasp what is from heaven, from Him. And when we gain the ability to trust and have faith in the valley of the shadow… then imagine what our trust will be, what our faith will be when we walk in the „highlands of light”!!!
„In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, [being] much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ,”
I P 1:6-7 (NKJV)
The Lord wants our faith and trust in Him to be more valuable than everything that is most valuable in the world’s opinion (gold). And that is why, as we enter the valley of the shadow, He tells us something unexpected, something that in the eyes of the world is madness. The Lord says „rejoice”. Because in the valley of shadows our faith becomes genuine. And what is important… the valley of shadows leads us to closeness with the Lord, it leads us to the glory that comes from His glory, to our personal confirmation that the Lord is with us.
It’s right there, the testimony, the authority, the anointing that overflows. That’s where the Lord wants to lead us, you and me. That’s all that was needed. We become people aware that anything valuable, indestructible, supernaturally good in our lives is ONLY and EXCLUSIVELY the work of God who walked with us through the valley of the shadow. He didn’t let me down, didn’t abandon me, didn’t lie to me… He is completely loving and trustworthy.
He brought us there, brings us there or will bring us there. How? In very different ways. Through difficult situations, failures, maybe sometimes through falls… He will want to cleanse us of ourselves in many aspects… but He will guide us in this. Look at Moses, King David, the apostle Peter, the apostle Paul. Look at them, at the path they have travelled. Don’t be afraid…I don’t want to be afraid either.
„Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever.”
Psalm 23:6 (NKJV)
