The year of the valleys.
Somedays I feel like the word’s on fire. Then other days I watch Jennifer Garner’s pretend cooking show and all seems right in the world. Somedays I feel like I am a member of the smallest minority of people on earth and never want to open my mouth again. Then other days I feel more seen and affirmed than I have ever felt before. Somedays I am killing it at the mom game then others I completely forget to feed them lunch.
So, with the painful awareness of my limitations I slowly tip toe into the new year knowing that all the goals and the plans and the big ideas and the dreams and the things that I long for will more the likely fail a few (hundred) times before we count down yet again to a fresh page in our books.
But, I still know there is one thing I want to accomplish this year;
I want to learn to live in the valley.
Not the physical place but the valleys and low lows of life that we all like to pretend don’t happen or don’t exist. I want to learn to sit in pain and grief. I want to learn to accept my flaws and failures. I want to learn to accept that life is not and will never be what I want. I want to accept that “not yets” and the “nevers” with grace. I want to build my little house in the valley, learn to be content and live there with joy.
Booooo. That sounds horrible right? Who wants to live in that time or place or moments that suck. Who wants those emotions or have to process the hard things of life? I sure don’t. I would much rather turn to my go to of a box of Oreos or a donair poutine while pretending that fire over in the corner is there to keep me warm and not make me uncomfortable.
There’s lots of truths in the Bible that are super uncomfortable and hard to digest. One of those things comes from our good friend Job (poor guy). Job 2:10 says “Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?”
Job lost everything. Then he lost a little more. But He just kept on proclaiming that God is good. Whenever I read through Job (which admittedly has only been 2 times) I just keep wondering how the heck he pulled it off. How do I fortify my heart and my home so that when trouble comes our way, when we feel grief or loss or pain that our very first and only reaction is to bless the Lord. How do I accept the trouble from God.
Well gezzz I am grateful for scripture that answers the questions we find in scripture (side note: study the Bible with the Bible, you’ll find all the answers I promise)
Here’s what The Word tells us;
BUILD A FIRM FOUNDATION
Luke 6:47-49 “Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great.”
Christ is our firm foundation. I have cried my way through that song more times then I can count (listen to it here). Calling out to God through chaos and hurt is hard but an automatic reaction when the foundation is firm. Guess what, He did, He does and He will but we need to have a firm foundation and be people who “hear His words and does them” (emphasis on the “does them”)
MEMORIZE SCRIPTURE
Deuteronomy 6:4-9 tells us to bind God's law on our foreheads, teach it to our children, talk about it wherever we go, and make it an integral part of our lives. Colossians 3:16 tells us to “let the word of Christ dwell in us richly.” Matthew 7:25 tells us no storms can make our home fall as long as “it has its foundation on the rock”
Memorize scripture as a family. Write the first letter of each word in the verse you are memorizing on your wrist or a place you will see it often. Know His word inside, outside and upside down so when the valleys come you’ve got a Word for it.
KEEP YOUR HEAD DOWN + DO THE WORK
1 Thessalonians 4:11 tells us to “Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands” Or, as my husband and I paraphrase it so often; keep your head down and do the kingdom work. What does that mean? It means let your life and your actions speak louder than some words that never actually match your life and your actions. I don’t care what position you are in, how much scripture you know or memorized or how fancy your words may seem. You cannot have an encounter with the real Jesus without formation. When you encounter and then are formed by Jesus you realize more and more that there are SO many things that matter zero to the kingdom so they will matter zero to you.
We live in a world that believes if you are not heard and seen then you are nothing and no one. But we serve a God who believes the complete opposite. Unplug, unsubscribe, bless + release and keep your head down and do the kingdom work.
KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE KINGDOM
Colossians 3:1-4 “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” Set your mind on kingdom things.
What are kingdom things you may ask? Well let’s keep reading; Colossians 3: 12-17 “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
When the storm hits, when the foundation feels rocky, when there is no scripture that immediately comes to mind, when you want to poke your head up and insert yourself into someone else’s business and get loud come back to this simple question; does this matter to the kingdom? (and always answer that question through then lens of the gospel)
Valleys will come. I can guarantee it. In fact, there is even a high possibility that the majority of your new year will be spent in lows and not highs. But here is the thing; God lives in the lows. In fact, God does some of His best work in the lows, maybe even the most important work. But, if we cannot learn to live and sit in the valleys then He can’t get His work done.
So, this year I will learn to sit and handle it well. I will continue to firm up my foundation, to memorize scripture, to keep my head down and mind my business and only focus on kingdom things
This year I will have some of the best lows of my life.
Here’s to a year of mountain tops and valleys + people who know how to glorify Him in both.