Highs and Lows

This has been an interesting past seven days for me. I had one of the greatest weekends of my life on many levels, followed by a mid-week 'low' due to being burdened by different things, then a phenomenal 'high' full of the joy of the Lord that has now brought me back to my usual norm (loving life in Christ). It's a roller coaster that I'm not used to riding, but I am eternally grateful for some of the lessons that I've learned and am excited to share them.

Don't be surprised if a valley follows a mountain-top experience.
It's so easy to get caught up in the "high" that you lose sight of reality. You might try to stay grounded in what life is usually like so that the descent isn't too great, but you never can. Nor should you- it would lessen the joy you have in the mountain-top experience!

Having spent a few hours climbing Mt. Chimborazo, one of the highest mountains in the world, I know what it is to have a literal mountain-top experience (see the above picture, taken on Mt. Chimborazo). It's an unbelievable experience! You can see for miles and miles and you can't help but be overwhelmed by the greatness of God in His creation.

But something else that happens at 16000+ feet above sea level is that you start losing your sanity. The air is very thin and you can't climb more than 100 feet without needing a break. Unfortunately, I've found that this tends to happen in our spiritual "mountain-top experiences". We go from saying "God, YOU are amazing. Why in the world would You ever choose to use me? How is it possible?" to saying "God, You have made ME amazing... thanks for Your awesome creativity and power." to saying "Wow- I'm amazing. God is good." It is in these mountain-top experiences that we need to be tremendously careful that we keep our eyes "fixed on Jesus" (Hebrews 12:2) and humbly recognize that apart from Him we "can do nothing" (John 15:5).

In the valley we can rediscover the greatness of God... with the right perspective.
I have had some excellent conversations about how amazing God is these past seven days with believers and non-believers. One of the topics that has come up is the tough times of life. In my life, I've found that sometimes God strips away all of the worthless things to help me see that all I need is Him- He's my greatest joy and desire. But what if you are already maintaining this correct perspective before the valley and during the valley?

Is it just of God to allow us to descend into a valley even when we're already focused on him? Let's look to the Old Testament Scriptures for our answer:

Job- honest, God-fearing man who repented not just for himself but for his children on a regular basis (Job 1). Even when the Lord took away nearly all of what was most precious to him, he still said "Blessed be the name of the Lord" (1:21). He stayed faithful to God, but when his friends and he questioned God's justice and reason in allowing this valley to happen, check out a part of the Lord's response in chapters 38-41:

Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said: "Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Dress for action (*or Gird your loins) like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me. Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements- surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it?... (38:1-5)

Have you commanded the morning since your days began, and caused the dawn to know its place, that it might take hold of the skirts of the earth, and the wicked be shaken out of it? (38:12-13)

Is it wrong to question God? Pray about that and see what God speaks to your heart, but understand that there's a chance the LORD's response to your questioning will be something similar to what Job received.

The person from whom we should draw inspiration during our time in the valleys is King David. Here are a few examples of his attitude during valleys:

"I waited patiently for the Lord; He inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the LORD." (Ps. 40:1-3)

"Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise Him, my salvation and my God. ...by day the Lord commands His steadfast love, and at night His song is within me, a prayer to the God of my life." (Ps. 42:6a, 8).

"Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in deep mire, where there is not foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me. ...Answer me, O LORD , for Your steadfast love is good; according to Your abundant mercy, turn to me.... I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify Him with thanksgiving. ...When the humble see it they will be glad; you who seek God, let your hearts revive." (Ps. 69:1-2, 16, 30, 32)

See a pattern here? Though David finds himself in quite a few valleys (many by his own doing), his focus stays on the Lord and He doesn't cease to hope in Him, trust in Him and give Him praise and adoration. He also remembers the Lord's faithfulness from the past and this adds to his hope and trust in the Lord. While we're walking through "the valley of the shadow of death", we should "fear no evil, for You are with me." (Psalm 23)

It's also comforting to know that the Lord truly desires the BEST for His children. Isn't that mind-boggling? Although we don't deserve even the smallest act of love or kindness from our Heavenly Father, He still works for our best according to what He knows is best. Check out Romans 8:28- "all things" work together for good for those who love Him and are called to His purposes. And what about Matthew 7:7-11, where it is described how if a son asks his father for something, won't his father give him "good things"? The craziest part of it all is that He knows that the best thing for us is Himself, so the greatest thing He can do for us is give us is Himself. But we'll tackle that in more detail another time...

Finally, we all have different mountain-tops and different valleys, but let's try to take them all with a right perspective: this week, fifty-seven Somali refugees drowned trying to flee the fighting of their home country when their boat capsized. My "valley" doesn't begin to compare to the valley of the sole survivor who lost his wife and three children and had to swim an entire day to reach the coast of Yemen.

In the same waters, four believers who were sailing the world and distributing Bibles were killed by Somali pirates. The burdens and "suffering" I feel don't begin to hold weight in comparison to the burden and suffering of the families who lost parents and grandparents.

Pray for those experiencing valleys all around the world. Trust in the providence of God and walk through the valley in confidence of the hope that the Lord knows what is best for us (Himself) and is working "all things" to this end for His greatest glory. And remember the immortal words of Marvin Gaye, there "ain't no mountain high enough... ain't no valley low enough... ain't no river wide enough" to keep Him from getting to us "babe".

In His strength alone...

Luke