Sunday Service: 08/05/2022
Supporting Scripture: Psalm 23:1-6
Title of Message: When I am In The Valley
Delivered by: Pastor Mercy
1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. 3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. 5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.
This passage is unquestionably one of the most favourite sections of the entire Bible. For one-reason: it speaks to the heart. For centuries this Psalm has been one of the most treasured passages in the bible. It is among the most familiar, so much so that even people who are not religious or very knowledgeable about Scripture recognize these words. The 23rd Psalm is among the most comforting, often being quoted in times of trouble or distress.
There are many images in this psalm which hold certain meaning. Of all the striking images in the Psalm, one stands out.
“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death . . .”
I know very little about mountains and valleys except from a trip I took some time back to the mountains of the Kwahu district in the Eastern Region of Ghana that taught me a few lessons about valleys.
I remember driving up the Mountain, I thought the trip up was bad but coming down was worse. It felt dizzy and blurry. In the valley your vision is limited. The mountains surround you and you can’t see much. The valley is also the place where mist/fog gathers first. The deeper the valley, the heavier the fog. And then there are the shadows. The sun rises late and sets early in the valley – the shadows are deep, and the light limited. Fear grips your heart, and the experience is not pleasant.
This is how we feel when we go through life’s valleys. Things happen that we couldn’t imagine would happen. The shadow quickly falls across your life and the future you thought would never be disrupted. And we find it hard to see or imagine, what the future will be like. You feel like everything is out of control. Some of us may be going through the valley experience now.
Psalm 23:4b for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
The rod is used by the shepherd to ward off evil and to direct the sheep as they walk. The staff with the large bend at the end serves to pull a sheep back to safety from the danger of falling off a cliff. Jesus is our good Shepherd who protects, guides, and supports us.
Someone might ask, “If Jesus protects and supports us, where was He when I lost my loved one? Where was He when I lost my job? The answer is, He was with your loved one and He is with you. Jesus is our Immanuel (meaning God with us) according to Matthew 1:23. And He has promised us that nothing can separate us from the love of God. (Romans 8:38-39).
“For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord”.
Jesus the Good Shepherd loves you so much that when you go through the valley experience, He heals your injuries, your pains, disappointment and discouragements. The story “Footprints” is a testimony as to how God heals, comfort and consoles us.
One night a man had a dream. He dreamed that he was walking along the beach with the Lord. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. He noticed two sets of footprints in the sand: one belonging to him, the other to the Lord. When the last of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the Footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path there was only one set of footprints. He recalled that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life. He questioned, “Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you, you’d walk with me all the way. Why is it that during the most troublesome times in my life when I needed you most, would you leave me?” The Lord replied, “My precious, precious child, I love you and would never leave you. During your times of trials and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you”.
Jesus said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. My grace is sufficient for you. My power is made manifest in your weakness. (2 Corinthians 12:9). Listen to how God sustains us when we depend on Him: (Isaiah 40:29-31).
“He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, And the young men shall utterly fall. But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.”
Surely God’s love will follow us all the days of our lives (Psalm 23:6a). It has been said many times that we do not always know what the future holds, but we do know who holds our future! When we have that kind of hope it is then that we realize that nothing can separate us from the love of God.