Fresh Baked Bread on the Valley Floor

In this season, my family and I are dealing with tragic and untimely loss.  The layers of pain and raw emotions are so difficult to walk through.  Not only do I have my own personal grief, I carry a burden for the tremendous grief of those who were closest and most affected by this loss.  And I think of Psalm 23 as we all enter into a time of walking through the valley of the shadow of death.  I didn’t want to be in a valley again.  I didn’t expect it, and certainly didn’t know it would be this deep.

No one loves a valley.

No one loves a valley.  We all dread the hard times that even Jesus told us we would encounter in this life.  It feels so wrong, so fearful, so painful, and so unfair.  We struggle to hold our faith as we plunge into a time of lament and crying out and waiting for the valley to end.  It is difficult and, honestly, I am tired.  I was just feeling like life was becoming normal again, and I was looking forward to the mountaintop for a while, or at least a nice high plateau.  And yet here I am.  Isn’t that the way life seems to go?  But even in this, I am learning more about the character of God.  In my seeking Him in this time, He has reminded me of two things:  valley floors and Elijah.

The valley floor is a promise. 

The valley floor is a promise.  It is the point at which God catches us and stops us from falling even further.  It is the point where God’s mercy and grace take over.  It is the place where He says, “Enough, child – rest in me now.”  We can’t fall any further than the valley floor.  We won’t fall forever.  There is a point where God catches us in His hand, and things can only get better from there.  God’s word tells us this.  Isaiah 41:10 says, “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”  And Psalm 37:23-24 tells us, “The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him; though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand.”

God never promised us instant solutions to our problems.

It is one thing to know that and believe it.  It is another thing to actually understand how that looks in our lives and what to do while we are sitting on the valley floor.  I too often hold this false belief that faith means that when hard times come, I just bounce back with a smile on my face and “God strengthens me” on my lips.  That somehow, reading God has caught me on the valley floor should make everything instantly okay.  And when it doesn’t, I start to think the problem is with me – I just don’t have enough faith.  But God never promised us instant solutions to our problems.  And in Psalm 23, David had to walk through the valley before he started to climb out of it. 

Elijah is at his end, lying on the valley floor. 

Which leads me to Elijah.  If there was ever a man of great faith, Elijah was it.  God said move and Elijah moved.  God said expect a miracle and Elijah saw the miracles happen.  And yet even Elijah had to walk through the valley, too.  The darkest valley that we see for Elijah happens in 1 Kings 19.  Elijah had just been on a high mountaintop – literally and figuratively.  He had just been on Mount Carmel, displaying the power of God to the people and the prophets of Baal by calling down fire that consumed not only an offering, but the stones, the soil around it, and even the water poured on it.  Then he prophesied the end of a drought in the land and saw miraculous clouds gather and provide much-needed rain.  Two amazing miracles!  And yet one chapter later, we see him running for his life from evil King Ahab and Jezebel.  He is at such a low point that he wants to die.  He says, “I have had enough, Lord,” and, “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” (1 Kings 19:4).  He then lays down and falls asleep.  He gives up, exhausted.  He is at his end, lying on the valley floor. 

God catches Elijah on the valley floor and gently holds and cares for him.

What is interesting about what happens next is not what Elijah does.  There is no strong, courageous statement of belief by Elijah.  There is not some super-human pulling himself up by his bootstraps and faith, and carrying on.  There isn’t even a beautiful psalm that comes out of the moment.  Elijah literally does nothing but lie under a bush in total defeat and exhaustion.  The interesting part is what God does.  God catches Elijah on the valley floor and gently holds and cares for him.  God asks nothing of Elijah in that moment.  God does not condemn or judge him for lack of faith.  Instead, He sends an angel to wake Elijah up and feed him fresh baked bread.  And then He lets Elijah go back to sleep again.  Can you even imagine that?  In the moment of your deepest fear and exhaustion to wake up to bread baked by God?    And then it happens again!  God sends the angel a second time with water and bread, and tells Elijah, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.”

God was pouring strength into Elijah one bite of freshly baked bread at a time.

Sometimes we read verses like Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,” and we think it means we must show some super-human sign of strength and spirituality when we struggle.  Elijah had no strength left.  God literally had to feed him.  God wasn’t asking Elijah to do anything but eat.  God Himself was telling Elijah that He knew that even walking was too much for Elijah in the moment.  God was pouring strength into Elijah one bite of freshly baked bread at a time – slowly, gently, and oh so lovingly. 

We, as Christians, so often expect that when we hit a hard time, we are to bounce right back on our feet.

Only after Elijah had eaten and rested did God tell him to move.  Elijah walked forty days to a cave with the strength that God provided.  And when Elijah got there, God allowed him to rest again.  I believe God moved Elijah for his next assignment, but even more importantly, God moved Elijah as another step of mercy and healing.  Besides being afraid of losing his life, Elijah truly believed he was all alone – that all the other prophets had been killed and no one else was left in the world but the enemies who were trying to kill him.  We know this, because while Elijah was in the cave, God asked him what was going on with him.  In 1 Kings 19:9-10, God asks Elijah what he was doing there, and Elijah replies that he has been as zealous as he can for the Lord, but that all the other prophets were killed, that he is alone, and that he thinks he will be next.  Elijah still has no strength of his own.  Elijah is still filled with fear.  The only thing that has even gotten him this far is the strength God Himself provided.  And this has now been going on for over 40 days.  And yet we, as Christians, so often expect that when we hit a hard time, we are to bounce right back on our feet, counting it all joy the next day.

God made a way for Elijah to experience Him powerfully and intimately, right there on the valley floor. 

How did God respond to Elijah still being helplessly depressed at that point?  Did He call Elijah out for not having enough faith?  Did God even say, “Fear not”?  No – God showed up.  God literally told Elijah to step outside of the cave because He – the Creator of all things – was going to pass by so Elijah could experience Him.  He made a way for Elijah to experience Him powerfully and intimately, right there on the valley floor.  Elijah went out looking for something amazing and he saw powerful things – wind, earthquakes, and fire.  But the Bible tells us that God was not in those things.  After all of that, Elijah heard a gentle whisper – a gentle voice of God’s love.  Sometimes on the valley floor, all we can see is the disaster – the earthquakes and the fire.  Sometimes all we can feel is the wind blowing us in all directions.  But if we can take a breath, God is there, whispering love and life to us. 

The very work God gave Elijah to do answered his deepest fears.

That gentle whisper was enough to get Elijah up and moving to the next assignments that God had for him – anointing kings and anointing Elisha as a prophet.  And God promised him that his enemies would be destroyed.  The very work God gave Elijah to do answered his deepest fears – he was not alone, and God would protect him.  It had to be a comfort for Elijah to know he really wasn’t going to be alone – that there would be one other prophet with him.  But unknown to Elijah, God had so much more in store for him.  The place God was sending him had 7,000 believers!  God was literally moving Elijah from a place of isolation to a city of people to lift him up and be in community with him!

I praise God for the valley floor. 

So as I look at this from the tough time I find myself in, what do I take away?  First of all, I praise God for the valley floor.  I know He will never let me keep falling.  I know that He reaches out and catches me before I am completely lost.  I will be struck down sometimes, but not destroyed. (2 Corinthians 4:9)

God never asks me to get right back up and act like nothing was wrong.

Second, when I am at my lowest, God never asks me to get right back up and act like nothing was wrong.  In fact, doing that is called spiritual bypassing and it is emotionally damaging.  He expects me to rest and allow Him to provide.  He gives me the bread and water I need when I can’t do anything else.  And He gives me that nourishment through Jesus –  the living bread and water that will never leave or forsake me.

He tells me that sometimes, my job is to rest and eat and drink Him in.

Third, before He expects me to move or do anything for Him, He will have given me everything I need to have the strength to move.  He never asks me to try to muster up my own strength and soldier on for Him.  He tells me that sometimes, my job for Him – my calling for the moment – is to rest and eat and drink Him in.  And to not move until I know it is Him telling me to do so.

He will be there, whispering quietly how much He adores me.

Fourth, when He does tell me to move, He will be there through any disaster.  Even if the road I have to move through is hard, He is stronger than any wind or earthquake or fire I might face.  And He is strong in His steadfast, quiet, and infinite love.  No matter how loud the world gets, He will be there, whispering quietly how much He adores me through it all.

He has a plan somewhere down the road that will exceed my expectation.

Fifth, he already knows my needs before I ask Him and He has a plan somewhere down the road that will exceed my expectation.  Am I lonely?  He may at first give me one person to stand beside me but later, He will give me a whole community.  Am I afraid?  He has already assigned people with swords to slay the enemies I am running from. 

Valleys only exist because there are mountains on BOTH sides.

And last, He tells me He is not done with me yet, just as He was not done with Elijah.  Valleys only exist because there are mountains on BOTH sides.  He still has more miracles, more missions, and more moments ahead.  And He has them for you, too.

Try to find a way to cherish the fresh-baked bread.

If you are in a valley right now, realize that you will not fall forever.  And as you are being held in the hand of God, don’t try to climb out of the valley too quickly or under your own power.  Let Him feed you, watch over you while you sleep, and give you just enough strength to move you the next step of the journey.  He will get you where you need to go at the end of this season.  Try to find a way to cherish the fresh-baked bread and whispers of love that He reserves just for His time in the valley with you. And remember to praise Him for His steadfast hand that catches you on the valley floor.

I hope today’s message touched your heart, increased your understanding, and encouraged you.  Praying the peace and comfort of Christ Jesus on your life.