2 Days in the Valley“Then a man
of God came and spoke to the king of Israel, and said, ‘Thus says
the LORD: Because the Syrians have said, ‘The LORD is God of the
hills, but He is not God of the valleys,’ therefore I will deliver
all this great multitude into your hands, and you shall know that I
am the LORD.’ ” The 1996 cult movie 2 Days in the Valley starring Danny Aiello, Jeff Daniels and the then-unknown Charlize Theron is about 48 hours of intersecting lives and crimes in the San Fernando valley portion of Los Angeles. We may not want to spend 2 days in the valley, but it is in the valley where the crop is planted and harvested. God is a God of the hills and mountain, but He is even more a God of the valleys. In the valley, it is difficult to see ahead because the clouds and smog cover the valley and limit our vision. Joseph was thrown into a Big Valley of slavery and imprisonment that left him wondering if God had deserted him. Job lost everything but his life in the valley and was tempted by his wife to curse God and die. (Job 2:9) Jesus hoped that He may avoid the valley of suffering at the cross that caused Him to sweat great drops of blood in Gethsemane. There is a painful valley that each of us must unwillingly enter in order to trust God, and to experience His faithfulness. The valley, however, produces much fruit for our lives so that we can sow seeds of love into the lives of others. If we are faithful in the valley, we will be promoted and reach new spiritual heights with God, because there is a harvest of wisdom and blessing that can only be grown in the valley. When we stand on top of the mountain, on a clear day we can see forever. God does allow for us to experience the mountaintop of Mulholland Drive at times. Joseph’s first mountaintop experience was as a teenager who was highly favored by his father Jacob. He was Rachel’s first born and was given a fine coat of many colors and even had a dream where all his brothers would one day bow down to him. Joseph had such a sense of destiny about his life that he never gave up on his dream. God often gives us a glimpse of our glorious future that we will remember when we are being tested to trust Him in the valley, although it may not reveal how God intends to bring about the visions He has for our lives. However, none of us can really develop the character traits God desires for us while we are living the high life on the mountain. That’s why God brought so many of us down low into the valley out of love and feed us with humility. When the moon hit your eye with a big humble pie, that’s amore! We need to embrace the valley because it is a place of fruitfulness, testing, and a prelude to increase. The valley may be hotter and smoggier, but it is a fruitful place where God brings promotion, blessing, favor, and increase come harvest time, so learn to seek the presence of God and spend more than 2 days in the valley today.Copyright © 2003 Eddy Ministries. All rights reserved. Subscribe/Unsubscribe: eddyn@earthlink.net
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