Of Mountains And Valleys

Reading from the Book of Isaiah 40:4-8

⁴ Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: ⁵ And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. ⁶ The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field: ⁷ The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the Lord bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass. ⁸ The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.

We all have "mountaintop" experiences and valleys (low moments) in our lives. We all have crooked places that seem confusing, times that are uneven (up and down), and situations that are rough and difficult. These verses teaches us that the flesh (people like you and me) is like puffs of smoke or blades of grass. We are here on earth for a very short time. We tend to be fragile, unsure, and shaky during our relatively brief lifetimes. God knows that and has no problem with it, because He is willing to work through us and to show Himself strong in our weaknesses. Actually, the Bible teaches that God's strength shows itself most effectively through our weaknesses (II Corinthians 12:9). Our weaknesses and shortcomings are like magnets for His power.

God can handle knowing what we lack and knowing that we fail. We, on the other hand, tend to beat ourselves up over our imperfections. We try to make excuses for them, try to compensate for them, and try to keep other people from seeing them. Instead, we need to admit our weaknesses and face them, not feel badly about them. We need to be honest about what we can do, but we need to be equally honest about what we cannot do, recognizing that those things are great opportunities for God to work through us.

Remember that God is not surprised by your inabilities, imperfections, or faults. He has always known about those areas of your life, even if you are just now discovering them. Only God is perfect. He chose you anyway, and He loves you in spite of all your shortcomings. 

We need to encourage each other to get up every morning, love God, and do your best in every situation. God has control of all of our mountains and valleys!