FINDING VICTORY IN YOUR VALLEY
by Eddie Lawrence

INTRODUCTION: I read a story about a man who saw an eagle. He said this….Once when I was in Switzerland I saw an eagle, a splendid bird, but it was chained to a rock. It had some twenty or thirty feet of chain attached to its legs, and to an iron bolt in the rock. There was the king of birds, meant to soar into Heaven, chained to earth. That is the life of multitudes of believers. Are you allowing business, are you allowing the cares of the world, are you allowing the flesh to chain you down, so that you cannot rise?

Is this a picture of your life right now? Are you being overcome by life's circumstances? Are you finding it hard to rise up and be who you know God has called you to be? The Scripture speaks to us on our place as Spirit born believers. Listen to what John wrote in 1 John 5…

TEXT: 1 John 5:For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome. 4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 5 Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

Transition: The above passage is rich in its content. Through God's Love and Obeying the God of Love we who have been born again are positioned to be overcomers. Our victory to overcome is found in placing our faith in the Victor himself…Jesus Christ. There is no situation beyond the reach of Calvary's power. We need to remember this in our seasons of struggle. The enemy desires for us to forget this power to overcome so that we can be overcome.

Let me share with you three things to remember to help you find and live in this victory in your valley.

1. Remember Your Victories

In the Old Testament, the people of God would gather together stones and mark a place where they had experience God in some type of breakthrough or victory. 

1 Chronicles 16:12 Remember His marvelous works which He has done,His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth,…

Psalm 78:41 Yes, again and again they tempted God,
And limited the Holy One of Israel.
42 They did not remember His power:
The day when He redeemed them from the enemy,
43 When He worked His signs in Egypt,
And His wonders in the field of Zoan;

Paul reminds us that even the enemy of death cannot stand against the victory that is ours in Christ. Listen to these verses:

1 Corinthians 15:56 The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

Each time we partake of Holy Communion we are celebrating the victory we have through Christ.

2. Remember Your Valleys

Notice in the following passage mention is made of passing through the valley of Baca.

Psalm 84:5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in You,
Whose heart is set on pilgrimage.
6 As they pass through the Valley of Baca,
They make it a spring;
The rain also covers it with pools.
7 They go from strength to strength;
Each one appears before God in Zion.

Baca is a word that has dual meanings: It can be translated "garbage heap or dump" and it is also translated "a place of weeping or tears." In both instances, the picture is not a pretty one but one we often face in life.

A. TRASHY TIMES–These are the times of failure, of wasted opportunities, of bad choices and ruined relationships. The place of disposal where life has tossed you into the dump.

B. TRAGIC TIMES–These are the times when you are pinned to the mat, cornered in the ring, and facing "inevitable defeat." These "no way out" moments tax and test us to the hilt. Will our God come through? These are times of tears and weeping.

Quote: A man by the name of William Ward said, "We should be thankful for our tears: They prepare us for a clearer vision of God."

What testimonies could you share today of being rescued from the trash heap or of God reversing your circumstances when it seemed impossible?

3. Remember Your Victories Often Come Through Your Valleys

Notice this passage again…it says they made a spring and were strengthened in the valley of Baca. Isn't it true that it is often in the struggle that we find the strength of God? 

Wow…from the garbage dump to the palace! From under the heel of the enemy to your heel on the head of the enemy. These are the turnaround situations God specializes in. These are the stories created through the power of the cross and the favor of God that is now upon us who were once sinners. Yahooooooooooo!!

Psalm 84:5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in You,
Whose heart is set on pilgrimage.
6 As they pass through the Valley of Baca,
They make it a spring; 
The rain also covers it with pools.
7 They go from strength to strength;
Each one appears before God in Zion.

Is it not true that as New Testament believers we have a Spring inside of us now through the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit brings to us the refreshing strength and grace of Christ to live in victory in all circumstances. Even death has no hold on the believer. Whatever it is that we need, Christ will supply it to us through His Spirit.

Illustration: Allow me to read to you from a devotional that once appeared in OUR DAILY BREAD:

In northern Chile, between the Andes Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, lies a narrow strip of land where the sun shines every day! Clouds gather so seldom over the valley that one can say, "It almost never rains here!" Morning after morning the sun rises brilliantly over the tall mountains to the east. Each noon it shines brightly overhead, and every evening it brings a picturesque sunset. Although storms are often seen rising high in the mountains, and heavy fog banks hand their gray curtains far over the sea, Old Sol continues to shed his warming rays upon this "favored" and protected strip of territory. One might imagine this area to be an earthly paradise, but is far from that! It is a sterile and desolate wilderness! There are no streams of water, and nothing grows there.

We often long for total sunshine and continuous joy in life, and we desire to avoid the heartaches that bring tears to our eyes. Like that sunny, unfertile part of Chile, however, life without clouds and even an occasional downpour would not be productive or challenging. But though showers do come, they will also end, and the sun will shine again. "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." (Psalm 30:5).

Let me remind you of the Psalm of David we call the Shepherd's Psalm. Here are a few verses that tie in with finding victory in the valleys of life and even death.

Psalm 23:4 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. 
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil; 
My cup runs over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life; 
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever.

POEM: VISION ACROSS THE VALLEY

I stood upon the hillside
In driving mist and rain.
The wind was round me whistling
A sobbing, sad refrain.
But away across the valley
The hill was bathed in light,
And in its golden glory
Was radiantly bright.
But would I reach that hillside
This valley I must tread:
The glory of the sunlight
Is to the valley wed.
And so, methought, how often
The story of our years
Is but a glimpse of glory
Through vision cleared by tears.—F. H. Oakley

CONCLUSION: Are you in a valley right now in your life? Let me encourage you believer…..you are still an overcomer through the One who has overcome. His victory is now your victory. His strength is now your strength. Have faith. Remember this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith.

For those of you who do not yet know Christ….place your faith in Him today. When you do, He will forgive you, fill you with His peace and power that will enable you to rise up in Him and overcome.

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