Valleys – often places of danger and darkness in the bible but also places of encounter with God. Are you going through a valley this week? Look out for God!
Hosea 2:14-15 NIV
[14] “Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her. [15] There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will respond as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt.
The Valley of Achor was a place of terrible judgement where a chap called Achan disobeyed God and stole some plunder and brought awful judgement on the people of Israel and ended up being put to death in the Valley of Achor, which means Trouble. It is a sad and solemn story (Joshua 7) and a heap of rocks was put up so that God’s people remembered it forever.
Here is a great promise though – the Valley of Achor, the place of terrible trouble and judgement, will become a door of hope as God reveals his longing and his love.
Is the trouble of today a door of hope? A place and time when we can encounter the God who loves us and longs to bring us into Life and relationship?
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death
Your perfect love is casting out fear
And even when I’m caught in the middle of the storms of this life
I won’t turn back
I know you are near
(Matt Redman)
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