As I write this devotional, the world is going through a major pandemic. Every nation on earth has been affected and to date there has been millions of deaths. During the height of this plague many families could not even be with their loved ones while they were in the hospital, and what has been especially difficult is not being there when a family member died, nor to gather friends and family at a funeral. This virus has had no respecter of persons as all races, ages, and levels of society have suffered to the same degree. As this pandemic has gone on and on, it seems that the world is forever changed, and that sorrow has become the new normal.
No matter how deep the darkness is around us, the fact remains that God is still on the throne. He has not forgotten us in our despair, nor has He turned His back on us when we have called out to Him. David learned this in the many severe trails he endured. He wrote: “…Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes in the morning. (Psalms 30:5b) Have you every awakened in the night and found it difficult to go back to sleep. It seems like the night just goes on and on and that morning will just never come. That is what suffering feels like. It tries to convince us that it will never end. It is during these long nights that despair sets in and the temptations to doubt attack so severely. But the truth is that suffering is temporary by nature.
Psalms 23 is the Bible passage most read at funerals and has comforted so many throughout the ages: “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.” (Psalms 23:4) Here, David is once again reminding us that whatever we are going through is temporary. We walk through it…it is a passage, not our whole life. The best thing to do when going through the valley is to keep moving forward. Don’t stop. When we are hurting, it is such a temptation to just sit down and begin feeling sorry for ourselves with thoughts like: “Why is this happening to me?”, or “What did I do to deserve this?” Instead of nursing your hurts, you must disperse them.
In reading Paul’s resumé of trials, what he went through is enough to discourage any one of us. In his letter to the Corinthians, he wrote that he had been whipped five times, (39 lashes each), 3 times with rods, he had been stoned and left for dead, three times shipwrecked, in jail for years, plus he had been robbed, betrayed by false brothers, faced hunger, thirst…wow…and more. (2 Corinthians 11:23-27) After Paul wrote this letter, he was once again imprisoned and sent to Roman to stand trial before Cesar. On the trip he was shipwrecked and marooned on the island of Malta. The inhabitants welcomed them and had kindled a fire to warm them from the rain and cold. As Paul was gathering wood for the fire a viper attached itself to Paul’s hand. I’m sure any one of us would react thus: “Not again, when will this ever stop?” But Paul’s reaction was classic. He just shook the snake off into the fire. That is a good lesson for each one of us. Just shake off the despair, the self-pity, and doubts.
To get from one mountain top to another you must go through the valleys. Valleys are to pass through not to camp in. Peter, James and John wanted to stay on the mountain top, but Jesus led them down to the valley. That is just life. It is in the trials that we discover that greater is He that is in us than He that is in the world. It is in the valley where we discover we are more than conquerors through Christ who strengthens us. The trials may seem more than we can bear and longer than we ever thought they would be. We may do a lot of crying, but remember, they are temporary. Joy comes in the morning.
Scriptures to meditate on:
Psalms 30:5; 23; John 16:33; Acts 28:1-6; 1 Corinthians 10:13; James 1:2-4, 12