Hello and welcome to this
teaching from Skip Heitzig, pastor of Calvary Albuquerque. Our series called The
War Is Over celebrates the songs from our worship
team, Battledrums, debut album now available on
iTunes, Google Play, and at battledrumsmusic.com. In this series, Skip examines
what these song symbolize for our Christian walk. If this message strengthens
you spiritually, tell us. Email us at
mystory@calvaryabq.org. Everyone knows pain and
suffering to some degree. King David referred
to such adversity as walking down into a battle. Inspired by Battledrums
song The Valley, Skip explains why the
valleys are necessary and how they can
even be rewarding. We invite you to mark your
Bible in Psalm Chapter 23. But before Skip
begins, check out this sneak peek of The Valley. [MUSIC BATTLEDRUMS, "THE
VALLEY"] I lived down in the valley. Or, as my neighbor
calls it, the valley. I lived down in the valley. It's the middle
Rio Grande Valley. It's one of the
topographical things that this area is known for. And I know it's a valley,
because I bicycle here. And this morning, I had to use
the lower gear to get here. You don't notice it in a car
as much, but on a bicycle you notice where the
hills and the valleys are. There are some spots
on the Earth where there are famous valleys that
have historical, biblical significance. The Tigris-Euphrates
River Valley, Mesopotamia is one of those valleys that's
the cradle of civilization. The Jordan Valley is part of
a great valley system called the Syrian-African rift,
where the tectonic plates of the Earth have given this
huge depression that goes right through Israel and much
of the biblical narrative is played out in that valley. Then there are
other valleys that are famous around the world. In Europe, there's the
Rhine Valley in Germany. The Chianti Valley in Italy. There's a valley
in California that has some interesting reputation,
the San Fernando Valley. And some of you will
think back to the '80s. A few of you will
remember the Valley Girl-- and they're still
around, by the way. It's just that whole
way of looking at life and talking it's like, oh,
totally awesome, you know. And the Valley Girl--
the Valley folks. The most famous valley
is in all of the world isn't far from here. It's the Grand Canyon-- a
mile deep, about 19 miles wide in some spots. The Grand Canyon--
the most famous valley according to the
research in the world. But there is a valley
that you know about. You've spent time
in that valley. Some of you are in it today. It's even more famous to
you than the Grand Canyon. It's The Valley. It's The Valley called
here in Psalm 23 where we're going to
read from in a moment. Psalm 23, the valley
of the shadow of death. A valley is a depression. It's a low spot. It's a place where
the ground is sunken. That's a valley. As opposed to the
hills or the mountains. It's more than just a
topographical designation. It's an emotional one as well. Some of you have felt what it's
like to walk into the valley. And for some, you've been
in that valley a long time. Experience after
experience, time after time, has rendered you still in a
very, very dark and deep spot. Years ago, on The
Tonight Show, when it was hosted by Johnny
Carson-- that's how far back it goes-- he used to
read newspaper clippings that were odd or funny. And one night, he read
from a Lost & Found section of a Midwestern
newspaper, this little ad. It said, lost dog. Brown fur, some missing. Blind in left eye,
deaf, lame leg due to a recent traffic
accident, slightly arthritic-- goes by the name Lucky. You ever feel lucky? Ever feel like that? Listen to Psalm 23. You've heard it, you know it. As I share with you this
morning and we meditate on, especially, one particular
verse-- we've done it before. We did last year. But I want to zero in on
one particular experience-- The Valley. "The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He makes me to lie
down in green pastures. He leads me beside
the still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in the paths of
righteousness for His namesake. Yea, though I walk through the
valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil,
for you are with me. Your rod and your
staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup runs over. Surely, goodness and
mercy shall follow me all the days of
my life and I will dwell in the house
of the Lord forever." Psalm 23 is, without question,
the most famous passage in the entire Old Testament. It is a poem without a peer. It is known by everyone--
even the ardent unbeliever knows Psalm 23. Charles Haddon
Spurgeon called it, "the pearl of the psalms
which delights every eye." President Lincoln used to read
it in times of depression. President George Bush
read it to a weary nation after September 11, 2001 to
calm the fears of our country. You typically find it
inscribed in cemeteries or on sympathy cards or
crematoriums or funeral homes. And that's a shame, really. It's a shame that
it's associated with death just because of
the single phrase, the valley of the shadow of death. It really has more
to do about living than it does about dying. So I think it's time to take
it off of sympathy cards and to write it on the
tablets of our own heart. Psalm 23 is called
The Shepherd's Psalm, for obvious reasons--
The Lord is my shepherd. Did you know that in
scripture, we-- God's people, His followers-- are
referred to as sheep more than anything else. 200 times, thereabouts, we're
called or looked at as sheep. Depending on what you
know about livestock, that is not complimentary. Don't you find it interesting
that the Bible doesn't picture us as old lions? Or strong bears? Or clever, wise owls? But sheep. The one creature more than
any other creature that cannot navigate well at all,
that wanders off. Isaiah said, all we like
sheep would have gone astray. That's what sheep do. Sheep need shepherds. A sheep on its best day is only
best because it has a shepherd walking next to it, guiding it,
and leading it along the path. Sheep do not navigate. Dogs do, salmon do,
birds do-- but not sheep. But I want to look with you at
one particular verse-- well, we'll consider others. But one in particular in Psalm
23-- and that's verse four. It's about the valley. We're not sure when
David penned Psalm 23. Some think it was at the
beginning of his life, when he wrote from the vantage point
of being a shepherd boy out in the fields of Bethlehem. But others, self included,
tend to look at Psalm 23 as written by David reminiscing
his time in the field. But looking back over life,
he's an older man now. He's surveying the
landscape of life. And he notices some things
about it-- it really is his statement of life. I want you to notice with me
five discoveries about the ups and downs in every single life. First of all, there
will be valleys. You'll notice that
he writes, not even "if" I walk through the
valley, but even "though". Or, "yea, though I walk
through the valley." the new living translation
is even clearer. It writes it this
way-- "even when I walk through the valley." Now, Psalm 23 doesn't
begin in verse four. It begins in verse one--
isn't that profound? And it starts off really great,
really happy- tranquility. "The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He makes me lie down
in green pastures. He leads me beside
the still waters." You can almost hear the music
playing in the background, it's so peaceful. But then something happens. In verse four, the
psalm takes a turn. A sudden turn that
almost doesn't even seem to fit in the experience
of the first couple of verses. Suddenly, danger is introduced. Suddenly, sheep are going
downward into a ravine. No more peaceful waters. No more calm, green pastures. Suddenly they're out of sight. What just happened? Real life just happened. You can't expect there always
to be green pastures, always to be still waters, always to
be smooth, wonderful vistas. There will be valleys. That's real life. Just as valleys are part of the
natural landscape of the earth, valleys are also
part of the landscape of the Christian life. There are ups and
there are downs. There will be some days that
the sun doesn't seem to shine, that the shadows are dark,
and the shadows grow long. Job was a man who
knew about suffering. And he even said, "man is
born to trouble, as surely as the full sparks fly upward." And what that means, it
means you can count on it. It means if you have
a heart that beats and you have breath
coming out of your face, if you are alive
in any capacity, you can predict that
there will be trouble. Just like when you light a
fire and the sparks ascend, there will be valleys. Paul even called trials and
temptations the things that "such as are common to man." They're common, but
they're never comfortable. They still seem to
take us off guard. It's funny how, when we go
down into a valley, it's like, what just happened? Like it's not supposed
to ever happen, like we're genuinely
surprised that we're actually going through a hard time. Now, shepherds lead their
sheep down into the valleys. Did you know that? They actually lead them down
into very steep ravines. I watched this over in the
Middle East time and time again. When the weather gets
hot, the shepherd moves the sheep downward,
for a couple of reasons. Number one, it's
cooler down there. Now, sheep don't like it. They hate shadows, they don't
see very well to begin with, and when they're taken
down a steep ravine, they get very, very
skittish and they require a shepherd motivating
them to get down that ravine. But the shepherd does it
to keep the sheep cool and because the runoff from the
rains are found at the bottom. That's where the water is. The greenest foliage
is at the bottom of the valley, which is
an interesting thought-- that a valley can
sometimes be the way to the greenest of pastures,
where the sheep would least expect it. There's a second truth to remark
on concerning Psalm 23-- not only will there be
valleys, but there will be some dark valleys. This one is called the valley
of the shadow of death. There are some valleys that
are darker than others, deeper than others, steeper
than others, longer than others, more difficult than others. There will be dark valleys. The Bible speaks of valleys
in terms of difficulties-- not just here, but in
the book of Joshua, in the book of Isaiah,
in the prophet Hosea. There is the valley of
calamity or trouble called the Valley of Achor, in Hebrew. In Psalm 84, there's a reference
to the valley of weeping. Ever been in that valley? Or the valley of
calamity, trouble. This is just one among
them-- the valley of the shadow of death. Something else you
may not know-- there is an actual valley
in Israel known as the valley of
the shadow of death. And if you've ever been
with us on a tour to Israel, you've been in the valley of
the shadow of death, literally. It's the Kidron Valley, it's the
valley just east of the temple area in Jerusalem that is
between the Mount of Olives and the Temple Mount. That's the Kidron Valley. Why is it called the valley
of the shadow of death? You only have to go there
once to figure that out. Everywhere you look in the
Kidron Valley, you see graves. People are buried there. In antiquity, the
poorest of the people were buried there and
all the way up the ascent of the Mount of Olives. For a variety of reasons,
over the centuries, they have been buried in the
valley of the shadow of death. To add to that, during the great
festivals in ancient times, especially the
Feast of Tabernacles in the fall of the
year, the temple used to be lit by four
great oil torches that, according to the
writings, illuminated the entire city of Jerusalem. It was well-lit at night,
except for one spot-- the Kidron Valley. Because the Kidron
falls precipitously-- it's so steep, the fall-off--
that you get no light, only a giant shadow from
the wall of the temple. It's darkened. So the valley of
the shadow of death doesn't necessarily refer to the
experience of dying or knowing someone who is, though
that could be part of it. The idea, in a literary
sense-- a poetic sense, a historical sense-- is
we're dealing with life at its lowest, its darkest. The time of depression,
the lowest times of life. A place of shadows. And sometimes, they
happen suddenly and you are plunged into them. I was reading the Reader's
Digest story about Flight 93 when it crashed into
that Pennsylvania field 14 years ago. It's been that long already
since September 11th. One of the planes that went
down crashed in that open field and before it crashed, a
man aboard-- a passenger-- got on a cell phone and
managed to call his wife. He got reception. And he said to her, the
plane has been hijacked. There are three men. They say they have a bomb. They've already
killed one person. This plane looks like
it's going down-- please call the authorities. His wife, when she got the
call, she said, one thing kept playing through my mind. I kept saying, no. No, this is just not happening. She said, this stuff doesn't
happen to people like us. That's what she said. This just doesn't happen. We have a perfect life,
we have great kids. We have good jobs. This can't be happening to us. And it happened. And when we feel like we are
plunged into a dark valley, our response is
often the same-- no. I'm a child of God. This can't be happening to me. And some of us are
facing, right now, some pretty dark difficulties. And perhaps it even is death. It looks dark to you right now. I just want you
to know something. If you're a Christian,
you're a believer, you don't need to
fear death anymore than you need to fear
taking a walk in a valley. You're walking down--
it looks dark right now. It seems for a
period of time dark, but you will come out the other
end to a higher elevation. Charles Spurgeon used to
say, death is not the house, it's just the porch. You're staring at the porch
and the porch light isn't on. But as you go through
the door, there's going to be a welcoming party. So there are valleys and some
of those valleys will be dark. Here's the third
thing I want you to notice from Psalm
23, a discovery that David makes-- you can
be fearless in the valley. Notice that he
says, "though I walk through the valley of the shadow
of death, I will fear no evil." Notice the words "I will". That's a choice. Did you know that
fear is a choice? It's a choice. So is faith-- that's a choice. It's an act of one's will. I am facing evil, but
I will fear no evil. One of the biggest
adjustments you'll ever need to make when
you're in the valley is an attitude adjustment. David says, I will fear no evil. He doesn't say, though I
run through the valley. This is interesting. I look at scriptures this way. He doesn't say, though I run
quickly through the valley so I can get it over
with as soon as possible. He doesn't say, though I
waiver and trip and fall in the valley. Or, shake in my
boots in the valley. No, here's a man walking. He's on firm footing. It's sure steps
that he is taking. And while he's walking in that
valley, through that valley, he's not afraid. It's as if he's making his way
through on sure footed ground and he's taking it all in. I'm going to suggest something
to you that you probably never thought of in a trial. Look around, in the valley. Look at the landscape. Don't let the time in the
valley be wasted time. Ask the Lord the
purpose of this trial. What are you trying to teach me? I don't want to waste this. I don't want this to
come and go and not learn the lesson
that is to be learned in the midst of this
difficult valley. Walk through it. And say, I will not fear. When he says, I will
fear no evil, please do not misunderstand
what he's saying. He's not denying
that evil exists. He's not positively
confessing away evil. He knows that evil exists. He writes about
evil in his psalms. He experiences it as life. I remember the first
time I came across what is called Christian Science. You've heard of that? By the way, Christian Science is
neither Christian nor science. It's like Grape Nuts. Have you ever looked
at a box of Grape Nuts? There's no grapes in them,
there's no nuts in them. There's just barley flakes. Christian Science is
like that, there's no substance to it-- it's not
Christian, it's not science. It was started by
Mary Baker Eddy back in the mid-to-late
1800s, who basically denied the existence of evil. It was an illusion, she said,
as is sickness and as is death. It's just an illusion. And that's just a
metaphysical game, trying to deny
something that exists that obviously does exist. So David knows it exists. He's experiencing it--
it's painful, it's dark, it's a valley. But he's making a
statement of faith, he's making a choice--
I will not fear. There's someone else that comes
to mind when I think of this and that is Job. Job not only talk about
trouble, he lived through it. He lost everything-- he lost his
children, he lost his health, he even lost a relationship
with his wife, who, after his sickness
ravaged his body, was so encouraging-- you
remember her comment. She said, curse God
and die, sweetheart. And I love his response. It was a statement of no fear. He said, the Lord gives
and the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord. Is that even
possible to say that? Well, I will tell you
that pain will move you in one of two directions. It'll either break your back
or it'll bend your knee. I've watched people
go through pain. They become very bitter, very
angry people at the end of it. Others don't really
become bitter, they just become battered--
just beat up and battered. Others become better. And that's possible, to
say, I will fear no evil. Now, one of the reasons
that David can say this is because it's not called
the valley of death. What is it called? The valley of the
shadow of death. Ah, big difference between
death and the shadow of death. Have you ever been run over
by the shadow of a truck? Have you ever been bitten
by the shadow of a dog? Have you ever been cut
by the shadow of a knife? No, the shadow is just a shadow. They seem bigger
than they are, they seem more ominous than they
are, but it's not the substance, it's the shadow
of the substance. So the shadow of death--
death has lost its sting, said Paul. "Oh death,
where is your sting? Oh, grave, where
is your victory?" There's still a
shadow that remains. But the substance is gone. There's a fourth discovery. I don't know whether there
will be valleys, some of which are very dark, and you can
make a statement of faith that you won't fear--
here's the reason why. Here's the reason why--
God is in those valleys. He can be found
in those valleys. He says in this
verse, "I will fear no evil for you are with me." OK, stop right there--
for you are with me. Did you notice a
change of pronoun? You've read this psalm before. There is a change
in pronouns-- I'm going to take you
back to English class for just a moment--
from the third-person to the second-person. Verse one, two, and three,
he's speaking third-person about God. Verse four, there is
a pronoun change-- he is speaking directly
to God in prayer. Notice it-- verse
one, the Lord is my shepherd-- all third person. "I will not want. He--" third-person
pronoun-- "makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside
the still waters. He restores my soul. He leaves me in paths
of righteousness." This is all third-person. This is who I
believe God to be-- here is my theology of God. But verse four is different. Now there is a change from
third-person to second-person. He's talking directly to God. "Even though I walk through the
valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil
for you are with me. Your rod, your staff,
they comfort me. You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies." All of a sudden, the
ultimate becomes intimate. All of a sudden, the
remote talking about God is relational, it's personal. May I suggest that when you
go through dark valleys, though it's good
to discuss and talk about God, that you spend most
of your time talking to him? That's where the benefit is. Find him in the valley--
you are with me. One of my favorite books on
this psalm is by Philip Keller. I've had it for years
and a favorite passage that I have read in
his little book-- because he used to be
a shepherd, himself. And he talks about what
it's like to be a shepherd and have a bunch of
sheep and he writes, "There is nothing that quieted
and reassured my sheep more than to see me in the field. The presence of their
master, owner, and protector put them at ease
like nothing else." There's nothing worse, when
you are going through a valley, than to feel alone. There's nothing better than
knowing you're not alone. When my son was
younger, there were nights where he would wake
up because of nightmares that he had. He'd just wake up in terror. And one of us would come in
the room and just our presence there-- picking him
up, holding him, maybe singing him a song--
would lull him to sleep and he would be comforted. Sadly, this only happened last
week, but he's getting better. Couldn't resist. Listen, what I want to say
is that God will never leave you alone to fend for yourself. Jesus said, lo, I am
with you always, even to the end of the age. It was that promise
that gave David Livingstone, a missionary
from Scotland to Africa, hope to go on. You know his story. I'm sure you've heard
of David Livingstone. He spent his life in Africa
and he was a true pioneer. He came back to
Glasgow, Scotland to receive an award on
one occasion in his life. And he was there
at the university. And people who knew
him or knew of him, they remarked on
how bad he looked. He was just beat up by
life, he was haggard. He had been attacked by a
lion on one of his arms. He lost the use of it, it was
hanging limply at his side. And he just didn't look well. And he comes to Glasgow,
Scotland and announces to everyone that he's
thankful for the award, but that he's going
back to Africa to finish out his calling. And he said to his
audience, do you want to know how I was
able to go through all of those dark times? All of the stories
you've heard about, what it was that kept me
going and why I'm going back? He said, it's the
singular promised that Jesus said, lo, I
am with you always, even to the end of the age. He said, I stake my
life on that promise. He's with me in the valley. Jesus said to his
disciples-- again, in the upper room-- I will
not leave you as orphans. I will come to you. And I've got to
tell you, Christians that I have known that have
suffered a lot will tell you that the richest time of
fellowship they've ever experienced-- I spoke
to one this morning. She said, as I
look back-- and you remember, I told you, when
I was going through this, how bad it was-- I'm
actually looking back today and I'm thankful
for the experience. The richness of the
fellowship I had with God is unlike any other
experience in my life. There is a unique
stillness in the valley. There's a unique presence of
God to be known in the valley. And there are unique lessons
to be learned in valleys. You can't learn
them anywhere else. You can't get them at a school. You can't get them
at a country club. You only get them in the
valley of the shadow of death. Lessons on compassion,
lessons of insight into God's character. Trust, growth-- it's one of the
reasons we suffer, by the way. Paul wrote and said
in Second Corinthians, Chapter One, "God is the God of
all comfort who comforts us," he said, "in all
of our tribulation, that we might comfort those
who are in any trouble by the comfort we have
received from God." I've gone through
it, so that I might tell you going through
it, how to go through it. And give you encouragement
and give you comfort. It's one of the
reasons we suffer. So, as you're walking
through the valley, look down for footprints
of the Lord Jesus who has gone before you
and will walk with you. Here's the final truth--
discovery-- made by David in the psalm for us. And it's the best part. The valleys won't last forever. They won't last forever-- please
notice the word "through". Though I walk
through-- that word designates a temporary nature. You're going through it. He's not going to
leave you in it. He wants to bring you out of it. There's an endgame here. He wants to bring you
through the valley. Now, in verse five and verse
six, though most of our time has been spent in
verse four, I just want you to notice,
again, a change. We're in the valley, it's
dark, but-- verse five-- "You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup runs over. Surely, goodness and
mercy will follow me all the days of
my life and I will dwell in the house
of the Lord forever." Do you notice the
change in these verses? The valley is now over. Now, the sheep, who
was in the dark ravine, it's as if he's invited into a
house, a tent, by God himself. And now the sheep is a guest
of a lavish host at a banquet, getting hospitality. Who just keeps filling his
cup and spreading the table before him. And what this
verse is hinting at is the hospitality that is
known in the Middle East. It's one of the things
it's most famous for. In ancient times,
if you were invited into somebody's tent or their
house, there was a protocol. The host would greet
you at the door, give you a kiss on the cheek. You would be anointed with
scented olive oil on the face to refresh you. Your sandals would be taken off
by a servant or even the host himself. Your feet would be washed. You would be handed
a couple of wine that is sweetened with honey
to refresh your palette. Then a rug would be
spread out on the floor and the food would
be brought in. And the picture is,
I'm at this banquet and God just keeps showing
my cup over and over until it runs over. He's not denying the valley. He's been through the valley. It's just that the
valley is now over and I'm experiencing
God's goodness. And he says, oh Lord,
you're just so awesome. You're so good. My cup, it runs over. There are some people
that don't talk that way. When you talk to them--
brother, how are you doing? My cup leaketh under. There's always something
to deflate the tire. It's always half-full. It's not on its way up. Well, it's empty and
it's getting worse. Here's a question and I like
to ask it from time to time. If life were a
Winnie-the-Pooh episode, would you be Tigger or Eeyore? Really, you don't
watch cartoons ever? Tigger-- my cup runs over. Eeyore-- my cup leaketh under. How do you view life? How do you view God? How do you view the valley? Can you say, God,
you're just so good. You're so good. You give so much. There's something else
about the shadows, as we bring this to a close. If there is a shadow, it
indicates there is light. Shadow is the result of
light being cast on an object to produce what they call
the umbra and penumbra of the person-- the shadow. If you're in a dark
spot, look for the light. There's light at the
end of the tunnel. Watch for it, look
for it-- it's coming. Your valley is not your
permanent residence. It's not a destination,
it is a transition. Peter said in First Peter,
Chapter Five, in a translation called The Message by Eugene
Peterson-- he renders it this way, "The suffering
won't last forever. It won't be long before
this generous God, who has great plans for us in
Christ-- eternal and glorious plans they are-- will have you
put together and on your feet for good." I like that "for good". The valley is temporary,
Heaven is eternal. It's like the woman-- her
favorite phrase in the Bible was "and it came to pass". And she would tell
her little Bible study group, that's my favorite
verse in the Bible-- she talked like
that-- in the Bible. 457 times , that little
verse, that little phrase-- it came to pass--
is in the Bible. It's my favorite verse. And people would say, well, why
is that your favorite verse? Well, because, every time I'm at
a dark spot and I'm in trouble, I know it hadn't come to stay. It's come to pass. That's country logic, but
it's theologic as well. It's good truth. The valley you're in will pass. You don't know my life. I've had trial and struggle
and struggle and trial after trial-- even if you
live to be 95 years old and your whole life
is filled with trouble when you compare that to
thousands and millions and billions of
years in eternity of carefree, pain-free living
in Heaven-- drop in the bucket. And that's how you
ought to view life. And when you go into the
dentist for a root canal, that 20 or 30 minutes in the
chair seems like an eternity, but it's not. It's not. You'll get through it and in the
end, you'll have great teeth. "And so this
momentary affliction," said Paul, "which
is but for a moment, will yield something eternal." I'm going to close
on this thought. You know that Jesus spent time
in the valley of the shadow of death-- death valley. I said that the valley
of the shadow of death was the Kidron
Valley, remember that? Do you know the
Garden of Gethsemane is at the base of
the Mount of Olives, at the bottom of
the Kidron Valley? Where the shadow
is at its darkest is where Jesus was
in that garden. And he felt the weight of my sin
and your sin coming upon him. And he said, nevertheless, not
my will, but yours be done. If this cup can
pass, it be great. But whatever you want
rather than what I want-- that's what he said. He experienced the depth of the
valley of the shadow of death. So when you call to him and
you pray to him in your valley, he can say, I have been there. I can relate to you,
I will walk with you. I will give you my
resources and you will come out the other end
saying, my cup runs over. You say, Skip, troubles
have been following me my whole life. How about goodness and mercy? Surely, goodness and mercy
will follow me, chase me down, all the days of my life. Trouble is, you've
got to look for it. We write our
troubles in marble-- we write our
mercies in the sand. We need to reverse that. Take note of the
blessings that God gives. Father, the valley
is not only what is considered in a song that
has been written, but some of us know the landscape
of it very well. We're familiar with the shadows. We've been there so long,
some of us, our eyes are so well-adjusted--
too well-adjusted. I pray, Father,
that like this poet, this inspired psalmist,
David, we would say it. I'm not going to stumble,
I'm not going to quake. I'm going to walk
on sure foundation. I'm going to walk in it, I'm
going to walk through it, and I'm going to
walk with my Savior. So that while I'm in
it, I won't be afraid. Because the shepherd
who gives me still waters and green
pastures is also the one who's with me
and not forsaking me when things are dark. And just like sheep, come to
places of real refreshment at the bottom of the valley. I pray we would be able to tap
into your mercy and goodness in the bottom of ours. Lord, this is more
than a sermon. For many people, this
is their reality. They live in it. There's some whose faces I
have seen in this service that I know. It's dark. I pray that you would comfort,
I pray that you would assure. And, Father, I
pray that you would encourage them to keep going. In Jesus' name, Amen. The valleys we encounter are
not our final destinations. We merely walk
through them and God promises that he is with us. You can give financially to this
work at calvaryabq.org/giving. And just a reminder,
Battledrum's album, The War Is Over is on
iTunes, Google Play, and at battledrumsmusic.com. Thank you for listening
to this message from Skip Heitzig of
Calvary, Albuquerque.
