What is a valley?
According to the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, a valley is “an area of low land between hills or mountains.”
In the physical sense, a valley is a low place surrounded by higher ground. But spiritually, the valley can represent seasons of difficulty, uncertainty, delay, disappointment, opposition, or seemingly impossible circumstances.
The valley experience is that difficult season when a believer finds himself surrounded by circumstances that appear to have no immediate solution.
It is the season when prayers seem unanswered, doors appear closed, strength seems depleted, and the future becomes difficult to see.
The Bible describes such a season in Psalm 30:5: “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”
The valley can feel like a night.
Yet the night does not last forever.
There is a morning after every night, and there is a divine purpose behind many of the difficult seasons through which God permits His children to pass.
It is easier to praise God when everything is going well. It is easier to believe Him when the doors are open, the bills are paid, the body is strong, and the future looks promising. But the true test of faith often comes when a person has every reason to complain, yet chooses to trust God.
Paul and Silas demonstrated this kind of faith in Acts 16:25:
“And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.”
Their midnight was not merely a time on the clock; it was a valley experience. They had been beaten, imprisoned and placed in chains. Yet they prayed and sang praises to God.
Their circumstances did not determine their worship.
Job also experienced a deep valley. In one day, he suffered devastating losses. Yet Job 1:20 says:
“Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped.”
Job was in the valley, but the valley did not take God away from him.
THE VALLEY IS A PLACE OF SEEMING IMPOSSIBILITIES
When a person is in a valley, he is surrounded by mountains.
The mountain on the right may represent one problem, while the mountain on the left represents another. His vision becomes restricted. He cannot easily see what lies beyond the mountains.
Sometimes life can feel exactly like that.
You may not know where the next opportunity will come from. You may not know how the situation will change. You may not see the answer to your prayer. You may look around and discover that human assistance is insufficient.
That is when your eyes must turn upward.
Psalm 60:11 says:
“Give us help from trouble: for vain is the help of man.”
There are situations in which human beings can help, and there are situations in which only God can make a way.
When you reach the place where human strength ends, remember that God's power has not ended.
Luke 1:37 declares:
“For with God nothing shall be impossible.”
David understood this principle. When his heart was overwhelmed, he did not allow his circumstances to become the final voice over his life. He cried to God in Psalm 61:2:
“From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.”
The valley may be lower than the mountain, but the God who dwells above the mountains can reach you in the valley.
WHY DOES GOD ALLOW THE VALLEY EXPERIENCE?
The valley is uncomfortable, but God can use uncomfortable seasons to accomplish spiritual purposes.
1. THE VALLEY TESTS OUR FAITH
One of the things God can accomplish through a valley experience is the testing and strengthening of our faith.
In Ezekiel 37:3, God asked the prophet:
“Son of man, can these bones live?”
Humanly speaking, the situation looked hopeless. Ezekiel was standing before dry bones—an image of death and complete hopelessness.
But God was teaching him to see beyond what his physical eyes could see.
The question was not merely about bones. It was a question of faith.
Could Ezekiel believe that God could bring life into a situation that appeared completely dead?
The same principle can apply to our lives.
Sometimes God allows us to encounter situations that expose the limits of our human understanding so that we can discover the unlimited nature of His power.
Job's faith was tested in his valley.
Paul and Silas demonstrated their faith in the prison.
Ezekiel was challenged to believe God in the valley of dry bones.
The valley tests what we really believe about God.
The valley may be characterized by dryness, but dryness does not mean that God has abandoned you.
Isaiah 41:18 declares:
“I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys.”
God can bring water into dry places.
The valley may also be characterized by deadness, but deadness does not mean that God cannot bring life.
Ezekiel 37:12 says:
“Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves.”
Jesus also declared in John 14:19:
“Because I live, ye shall live also.”
What looks dead to you may still be within the reach of God's resurrection power.
2. THE VALLEY TEACHES US TO USE THE POWER OF OUR WORDS
In Ezekiel 37:4, God instructed Ezekiel:
“Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD.”
God gave Ezekiel something to say in the middle of the valley.
This teaches us that difficult seasons should not become seasons of spiritual silence.
When everything around you is speaking negatively, you must learn to speak God's Word.
This does not mean denying reality. It means refusing to allow your present circumstances to become greater than God's promises.
David demonstrated this in Psalm 23:4:
“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me.”
Notice David's language.
He did not say, “I will remain in the valley.”
He said, “Though I walk through the valley.”
The valley was a passage, not a permanent residence.
Your present situation may be difficult, but it does not necessarily define your destination.
Job 22:29 says:
“When men are cast down, then thou shalt say, There is lifting up.”
There must be a voice of faith in the midst of the valley.
Your mouth should not become an instrument for announcing defeat. Let your words agree with the promises of God.
Speak faith.
Speak hope.
Speak life.
Speak the Word of God.
Do not allow the valley to silence your voice.
3. THE VALLEY TEACHES US TO LOOK UP TO GOD
When you are in a valley, the mountains around you can dominate your vision.
That is why you must deliberately lift your eyes beyond the mountains to the One who created them.
David said in Psalm 121:1–2:
“I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth.”
The mountains may be bigger than you, but they are not bigger than your God.
The problem may be great, but God is greater.
The situation may be beyond your ability, but it is not beyond His ability.
Hebrews 12:2 therefore instructs us to be:
“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith.”
The valley can become a place where our dependence on God becomes deeper.
When everything else becomes uncertain, God remains certain.
4. GOD CAN BE GLORIFIED THROUGH THE VALLEY EXPERIENCE
The valley is not only about what we are going through; it can also become an opportunity for people to see what God can do.
In Ezekiel 37:13, God said:
“And ye shall know that I am the LORD.”
And in verse 14:
“Then shall ye know that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it.”
God can turn situations that appear hopeless into testimonies that reveal His power.
Isaiah 40:4–5 declares:
“Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low... and the glory of the LORD shall be revealed.”
The God who meets us in the valley can also bring us into a place where His faithfulness becomes evident.
Your valley may become a testimony.
Your tears may become a testimony.
Your waiting may become a testimony.
Your deliverance may become a testimony.
The story is not over simply because you are currently in a valley.
HOW DO WE COME THROUGH THE VALLEY?
The valley experience requires more than wishing for a change. It requires faith, persistence, prayer and a determination to keep trusting God.
1. HAVE FAITH IN GOD
Jesus said in Mark 11:22:
“Have faith in God.”
Faith is not the denial of the mountain; faith is confidence that God is greater than the mountain.
Jesus continued in verses 23–24 by teaching about believing God and praying with faith.
When you are in the valley, do not measure God's ability by the size of your problem.
Measure your problem by the greatness of your God.
Believe that God can make a way where there seems to be no way.
2. KEEP SPEAKING GOD'S WORD
Ezekiel did not stop after the first command.
He prophesied, and the bones came together. But something was still missing: there was no breath in them.
The prophet had to continue.
This is a powerful lesson.
Sometimes we stop praying because we see partial improvement. Sometimes we stop declaring God's Word because the situation has changed but has not yet become what we are trusting God for.
Keep trusting.
Keep praying.
Keep speaking God's Word.
Do not stop halfway through the process.
God instructed Ezekiel until the dead bodies received life.
Genesis 1 also shows a progressive work of creation. God spoke, and creation responded to His command, until Genesis 1:31 says:
“And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.”
There are seasons when you must continue believing God until the work reaches completion.
3. WAIT UPON THE LORD IN PRAYER
Waiting does not mean doing nothing.
Biblical waiting involves trusting God while remaining prayerful and obedient.
David said in Psalm 40:1–2:
“I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit.”
God heard David's cry and brought him out of the pit.
Isaiah 40:31 also says:
“But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles.”
There are seasons when your greatest spiritual responsibility is simply to remain before God.
Pray.
Fast when appropriate.
Seek God's direction.
Wait on Him.
Do not abandon your faith because the answer has not arrived according to your timetable.
4. PRAISE GOD IN THE VALLEY
One of the greatest lessons from Paul and Silas is that praise does not have to wait for deliverance.
They praised God while they were still in prison.
Acts 16 tells us that their worship was followed by a supernatural intervention: there was an earthquake, the prison doors were opened, and their chains were loosed.
Praise in the valley is an expression of trust.
Do not wait until everything changes before you worship God.
Worship Him while you are waiting.
Worship Him while you are praying.
Worship Him while you are believing.
Isaiah 24:15 says:
“Wherefore glorify ye the LORD in the fires.”
The “fire” is not the place where praise should disappear. It can become the place where praise becomes most meaningful.
THE VALLEY IS NOT YOUR FINAL DESTINATION
Perhaps you are currently passing through a valley.
Perhaps you are facing a situation you cannot explain.
Perhaps you have prayed repeatedly and are wondering when the answer will come.
Perhaps the future looks uncertain.
Remember this:
The valley is a place you can pass through; it does not have to become the place where you end.
David said, “Though I walk through the valley.”
There is movement in that statement.
He was walking.
He was not stopping.
He was not building a house in the valley.
He was passing through.
Therefore, keep moving with God.
Keep believing.
Keep praying.
Keep praising.
Keep speaking His Word.
Keep your eyes on Jesus.
The God who meets you in the valley is also the God who can lead you out of it.
Your valley can become a testimony of God's faithfulness.
Your dry place can receive water.
Your dead place can receive life.
Your midnight can give way to morning.
And the place where you once wept may become the place from which you testify of the goodness of the Lord.
Do not give up in the valley.
God is still with you there.
And by His grace, you will come through.
