CONQUERING LIFE=S VALLEYS – Pt 3

Psalm 143:1-12 “Hear my prayer, O LORD, give ear to my supplications: in thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness. And enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight shall no man living be justified. For the enemy hath persecuted my soul; he hath smitten my life down to the ground; he hath made me to dwell in darkness, as those that have been long dead. Therefore is my spirit overwhelmed within me; my heart within me is desolate.”

In our last two “Challenging Concepts” we have looked at a time in the life of David when he was in the midst of a dark valley. He was running from his own son who hd turned his back on his father, and had set out to take his throne from him. David was discouraged, depressed and had come to a place where he did not even want to go on in his life. David was really hurting.

As I have mentioned before, there are many people today who are facing times of hurting in their life. They may not have faced something like this in their life, now they are going through the valley of unknown. One of my wife’s and my favorite preacher, Dr. Charles Stanley, said “As you walk through the valley of the unknown, you will find the footprints of Jesus both in front of you and beside you.” Oh, what a wonderful thought. Just to realize that Jesus is with us and going before us, brings comfort to our hearts.

In Psalm 143 we have noticed that THE VALLEY MAY BE FILLED WITH PAIN. Now we want to see that the THE VALLEY WILL BE FILLED WITH PEARLS.

We may not see them at the beginning, and we may not even see them during the valley experience, but there are benefits of going through valleys. We will gain PEARLS of great price. What are they? Let me list a few:

1. There is a time of REPENTANCE – Notice verse 2 "And enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight shall no man living be justified."

When a person is going through a valley experience in his life, he usually begins to wonder if he has committed some kind of sin that is causing this valley. He begins to reflect upon his attitudes and actions. There is a time of cleansing as he asks the Lord to reveal things in his life that are wrong. This is good. There may be some sin in a person’s life, that sin may not be the reason for the valley.

If there was anyone who knew what sin could do in a person’s life, it was David. Notice what we read in Psalm 32:1-4, "Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven whose sin is covered Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile. When I kept silence (about my sin and did not confess it) my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long. For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah."

What a terrible picture of what sin can bring upon a person. David is affected physically. He has become weak bodily. Conviction is upon him in a mighty way. He knows it. He knows what he is going through is from the crushing hand of God, but he does not confess. He may be silent when it comes to confession but he is moaning like a wounded animal because of his sorrow. Because of his sin, he is under a tremendous amount of conviction but has gone a whole year without confession.

Notice what David wrote about this in Psalm 66:18 "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:" The word “regard” means that after seeing your actions as God sees it, you continue to cherish that sin. When a person realizes sin in his life, he must confess it. We read in I John 1:9 AIf we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.@

As I stated earlier, sin may not be the cause of the valley but when we reflect upon our attitudes and actions, God will usually point out some sin. And when it is pointed out by the work of the Spirit of God and we confess it, that is a benefit to our valley, and a beautiful pearl.

2. There is a time of REMEMBRANCE – notice verse 5, "I remember the days of old; I meditate on all thy works; I muse on the work of thy hands."

David had much to remember. God had done so much in the life of this individual. Even as a young man God had given him the strength and ability to kill the lion and a bear. He was also with David when odds were aginst him on the battlefield against the Philistines. God used David to kill that giant and gain the victory for the army of Israel. David had so much to remember in his own personal life. And, God had done so much for the nation of Israel.

Even when going through this dark valley, David reviewed his life and he saw how God had worked in his life. Then he turned to the Word of God and it refreshed his heart.

I’ve talked to many people who were going through a dark valley and testify that at that time Satan attacked them. That’s how he works. He did that with Eve in the garden and he still uses that tactic today. He will tell you that the reason for this valley is that there is sin in your life. He will tell you that God has forsaken you. That is a lie. God has said in Hebrews 11:5 “. . . I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”

It’s when you are going through a valley (trial) you must look back and remember the goodness of God, a beautiful pearl.

3. There must be a time of RELIANCE – Notice what we read in verse 6 “I stretch forth my hands unto thee: my soul thirsteth after thee, as a thirsty land. Selah.”


David is giving a picture of a dry, parched and cracked ground which is longing for some refreshing rain from above. The earth is thirsty and opens it’s mouth crying out for God’s help. This is the way the Psalmist feels as he is in the midst of this dark valley. His soul is longing for refreshment from the showers of blessings which only God can provide.

David says that he stretches forth his hands unto God. The idea here is that of a prisoner who is bound. He feels as if he’s a bound prisoner in this circumstance that he’s going through and knows that only God can help him at this time. But you can see that David is not only stretching forth his hands but he’s stretching forth his heart also. You can sense David’s heart as he writes.

David understood that he couldn’t do anything himself to produce the answer to his need. The only place for David to turn was to God. He had to rely on Him and he did.

When you are in a dark valley you feel as if you are at the end of yourself. You are in a BIG VALLEY so you need a BIG GOD. This is where the wise counsel of Proverbs 3:5-6 comes in: "Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths."

In a valley you need direction. You need guidance. This is a time when you can make mistakes. In a dark valley you are very emotional and your emotions can drive you to acting in haste. You can react to the circumstance instead of responding. (Remember: reaction is a work of the flesh while responding is a fruit of the Spirit.)

The valley in your life is not an accident. God has a purpose in allowing you to experience this valley or trial. Remember what Paul wrote in
Romans 8:28, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." As I usually say, “the valley experiences are for our good” and my wife always adds, “and for God’s glory.” Another beautiful pearl.

We must see the valley for what it really is. It’s a time of repentance, remembrance and reliance. We usually think that no one has experienced what we are going through, but in light of eternity, our suffering is nothing compared to what our Savior went through. Notice what the Apostle Paul wrote in II Corinthians 4:17, "For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;"

Dark valleys are terrible. They are full of pain and suffering. But on the other side of the coin, valleys are valuable. These are times when we learn eternal truths about God. They are also times when our faith is energized and strengthened.

Motivational speaker Denis Witley writes “When you are in the valley, keep your goal firmly in view and you will get the renewed energy to continue the climb.” Just as pearls are made by an oyster caused by a hurtful grain of sand, we also can turn hurts into beautiful lives if we respond to God in the valleys. We will grow and God will be glorified. Remember these pearls of wisdom and beauty.

What is the goal of the believer? The goal is to glorify God in and with your life. Can you do that in a dark valley? You bet you can. Next week we’ll look at the PATH out of the valley. There is a way out. God has it and David shows us in this passage.

That’s my view; how about you?