Learned in Darkness, Spoken in Light
Matthew 10:27, What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops.
As Christians, most of desire to be used of God and we feel that empowerment of the Holy Ghost in us when we speak in tongues. We are anxious to wield that power, but many times we aren’t willing to spend the time in the battle to develop it. I wish we could all learn our lessons on the mountaintops of our spiritual experiences, but the lifelong teachings are those learned as we walk through the valley. Jesus wants us to climb the mountains and speak His message of grace to the world, but before we do, we have to learn to tune our ear to hear those whispers in the da
Many of us have found strength through our storm as we read the Prayer of Moses in Psalm 91:1-3, He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow to the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. Such absolute beauty! The words flow with poetic grace and majestic thoughts that lift the weary heart to higher peaks of provision and promise, but where did Moses learn those awesome things he presented to us in the first part of this Psalm? He learned them when he refused to be called the Pharaoh’s son, when he faced the wrath and might of Pharaoh’s armies, on the backside of the desert where he wandered for 40 years! He learned to hide himself in God as he walked the pathway of the valley.
Paul also walked this pathway in the New Testament. In II Corinthians 12:9 he wrote, …My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Paul asked the Lord to relieve him of his “thorn in the flesh” but he realized that God’s grace was truly sufficient when his request was denied. He penned the words to the Church of Corinth while languishing in the Maritime Prison in Rome as he waited to be beheaded.
Truth be told, we live in the valley. The mountaintop is great, but we can’t live there. The air is too thin and it is too cold for habitation. Through our lifetime, we all walk the dark path of the valley at some point. Don’t let that time be in vain. There are five things to look for:
- Learn the lesson from the valley. Accept responsibility and don’t blame others for the dark place you are in. Jesus teaches us lessons in the dark that we can later teach others during their storm.
- Look for Jesus. He is still King in the darkness. Remember, it was in the fire that the fourth man appeared with the three Hebrew children.
- Look for the opportunity to minister to others. Many times others who are walking their valley paths really need what you can share with them. It is in the valley, not the mountaintops where victories are won and people come to Jesus.
- Look for the Lily in the valley. Flowers don’t grow on the mountaintops. The flowers, fruit trees and gardens all grow in the valley. That is where we find our nourishment.
- Look UP in the valley. Don’t go hang your head and give up! Psalm 121:1-2, I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth. Jesus was crucified on a hill but His blood ran down to the valley.
His Church was born in the Upper Room, but spilled out into the valley. So quit chafing at the valley for that is where the vision is, our souls are restored, marriages are made, children are raised, churches are built and the work of God is truly done. Your roots grow deep when you are planted in the valley!
