“Even though I walk through the darkest valley…”
(Psalm 23:4 – NRSA)

We are familiar with the signs that read, “You are Here”. All of us from time to time have found ourselves in a place where we have stood, wondering how to get from where we were to a better place. Some places have intimidating entrances, looming large as we enter. David, the psalmist, had great experiences with entering dark caves and weathering valleys. (Suddenly, he’s no longer just a character in the Bible, but someone we can identify with.) For years he was chased by king Saul. Those were uncertain years for David. He wrote in I Sam. 20:30 – “There is a step between me and death.” His visibility had diminished to what he could only see close around him. It was like a deep fog that surrounded him and there seemed to be no clearing to any brighter path. It was in that moment that he learned God from the shadows. In this deep darkness he sensed there was no need to be afraid — God was with him! David had great experiences with God, with a lion and a bear, and men similar to Saul.
Somewhere between here and there, the way to our destination is lined with uncertainties, doubts, and things that challenge us to fear. God is with us! He has never taken His eyes off of us — not for one moment. It takes being in a dark place to bring this truth to light. On the other hand, many of us are facing somewhere between here and where the enemy tries to tell us we will wind up being.  He often tries to project our future from where we currently stand. He mockingly tells us, “you are here and this is where you are headed!” Job, no doubt, was faced with similar voices after having lost so much. His response was, “He [God] knows the way I take; when He has tried me I will come forth as gold (Job 23:10). So — there is an intervening period — something that happens in the mean time! It takes place before the outcome of what has been negatively predicted. God is continually in that interim — watching and moving as we travel through the darkness.
We are somewhere between the place we have started and a destination. The forecast can be bleak, but God is familiar with each valley. While we travel, our destination is to see Jesus and to enter into a place of finality. He is the one who has gone on before us and now ever lives to make intercessions for us. Fear not little flock, it is our Father’s pleasure to give us the kingdom!