Hilltops and Valleys

Have you ever given someone a word of advice or encouragement and then realized that it applied to you as well? When our words of counsel are God-breathed they will bless both the speaker and the listener! This week I was sharing with a friend about the hilltop moments and valleys of our lives. As we talked I was reminded that fruit comes in every season of our lives; however we choose if we bear the fruit of bitterness and anger or of contentment and love. The attitude we have in each season of our lives will determine the kind of fruit we will bear.

We all love the moments where we have reached a pinnacle with God and for God. We feel as light as a leaf dancing on the breeze and we have such clarity as we take a glimpse of the bigger picture. Our hearts are so full of love and gratitude for God that we feel it may burst, it’s overwhelming! I believe this is just one way that God rewards us for being obedient to Him, and once you’ve had a hilltop moment you long to stay there with Him forever! Take a minute to think about your last hilltop moment with God. It’s a sweet memory isn’t it?

We also have times in our lives when we travel through valleys. These are the times when we seem to struggle more and hear from God less. We may be caught up in a stronghold of sin or God may be choosing to be silent. It’s during these difficult times when our faith begins to mold and shape us. How we act when we aren’t hearing God’s voice or seeing His hands move says a lot about our relationship with Him: Think back to the days in elementary school. Remember when your favorite teacher would be gone for the day and a substitute would come in? The substitute would not have the same rules and procedures as your favorite teacher but in the back of your mind you still knew what your teacher would expect from you. So were you the kid who followed the rules you already knew, or where you the kid who gave the substitute a hard time and pretended that you didn’t know better? Even when God is silent, we still know what He expects from us!

Regardless if you’re well on your way to another hilltop moment with God or if you’re camping out in the valley, God will use everything we go through for His glory if we let Him. Just think, even while the Egyptians were in slavery they were able to invent the concept of Geometry to get their job done. Talk about not wasting time! God used a season that lasted for years and years and gleaned something that still benefits the world today…amazing! Whether you’re in a season of victory or a season of defeat, God is working in you right now for His glory. We just need to embrace the season we’re in and let Him do what He needs to do in us! Hilltop or valley… it’s all for His purposes!

Be blessed,
Jennifer

“I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” Philippians 4:12