Through the Valley - Part 2 · The Disciple Machine

Through the Valley - Part 2

Blessed Is the Man Whose Strength Is in the Lord

Psalm 84:5 says, “Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them.” The thought of the verse is that blessed is the man whose strength is in the Lord, whose heart is set on pilgrimage. That is where the blessing begins. It does not begin with a trouble-free life. It does not begin with easy circumstances. It does not begin with every question answered or every burden removed. It begins when a man or woman learns where true strength comes from. “Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee.” Not in self. Not in personality. Not in willpower. Not in human wisdom. Not in a better plan. Not in trying to outthink the valley. The blessed man is the one whose strength is in God.

That is not always easy to admit. We like to think we are strong. We like to think we can handle more than we really can. We like to believe we have a plan that will work better than God’s plan. But the Valley of Baca has a way of exposing us. The valley teaches us that our strength runs out. Our patience gets tested. Our emotions fluctuate. Our confidence shakes. Our endurance grows thin. But God never runs out of strength. The pilgrim who learns this is blessed, not because the valley disappears, but because he has discovered where his strength comes from while he is walking through it.

This is why the promise of II Corinthians 12:9 becomes so precious. The Lord said to Paul, “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” That is not religious poetry. That is survival truth for the pilgrim. “My grace is sufficient for thee.” Not barely sufficient. Not occasionally sufficient. Not sufficient only when life is easy. His grace is sufficient in weakness, in pain, in confusion, in exhaustion, in tears, and in the long march through Baca. Then the Lord says, “for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” That means weakness is not the place where God abandons us. Weakness is the place where His strength is displayed. Weakness is where we stop pretending we are enough. Weakness is where self-dependence dies. Weakness is where the pilgrim learns to lean with all his weight upon the Lord.

You will find yourself in places of weakness along the journey. I do not care how strong you think you are. I do not care how long you have been saved. I do not care how much Bible you know, how many sermons you have preached, or how many sermons you have heard. There will be places where you are weak. There will be places where you say, “Lord, I do not have enough strength for this.” And that is when His words become life to the soul: “My grace is sufficient for thee.” God’s grace does not merely save us at the beginning of the journey. God’s grace sustains us all the way through the journey. His grace keeps us moving when we would rather sit down and quit. His grace gives us strength when our own strength is gone.

Hebrews 13:5-6 gives us another promise for the valley. The Lord says, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” Then the Scripture says, “So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” That is a valley promise. The Lord did not say, “You will never pass through sorrow.” He did not say, “You will never feel weak.” He did not say, “You will never face opposition.” He said something better: “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” The presence of God is greater than the absence of trouble. The faithfulness of God is greater than the fear of man. The help of God is greater than the pressure of circumstances. Because He has promised never to leave us, we may boldly say, “The Lord is my helper.”

That word helper is not a weak word. It is not sentimental. It is strong. It means God comes to the aid of His people. He does not observe His pilgrims from a distance while they struggle through the valley. He is present. He helps. He strengthens. He sustains. He gives courage where fear has tried to take over. He gives peace where confusion has tried to settle in. He gives endurance where the flesh wants to stop. That is why the believer can say, “I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” Not because man can do nothing. Not because trouble is imaginary. But because God is greater than man, greater than trouble, and greater than the valley.

The valley becomes dangerous when we try to walk through it in our own strength. That is when bitterness can rise. That is when fear can take root. That is when discouragement can become despair. But the man whose strength is in the Lord learns to say, “Lord, I cannot do this without You.” That is not defeat. That is faith. That is the beginning of real strength. The world tells us to believe in ourselves. The Bible tells us to trust in the Lord. The world tells us to dig deeper into our own resources. The Bible tells us that the Lord is our helper. The world tells us to be self-sufficient. The Bible tells us His grace is sufficient.

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Through the Valley - Part 2