“Even when I walk through the dark valley of death, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and staff protect and comfort me.” Psalm 23:4
When I was diagnosed with skin cancer, so many people were praying for me. I had people laying hands on me, praying for divine healing; people trusting that God would heal me miraculously. He did heal me, it just looked a little different, and I had to learn to trust God’s presence in the dark valley.
A couple of weeks after my diagnosis, people started approaching me and asking if I had healed. I wasn’t, my skin cancer did not spontaneously go away. There was a treatment regimen given to me by my doctor. I understood the question and was thankful for people’s faith and support, but it also frustrated me. Why wasn’t I healed when they prayed? Was my faith not strong enough? Did I do something wrong? Did God not love me?
At times, I found it hard to reconcile a good and loving God when I felt like I was walking through a dark valley. I had felt like this at other times in my life, when I was struggling in the depths of anxiety and depression, and when my Dad died. Maybe you can relate? When the bills are piling up, but the money isn’t there. Or you lose your job, or don’t get the one you wanted. Maybe it is an unexpected diagnosis or losing a loved one. Why do bad things happen to good people?
God never promised an easy life here on earth. After all, it is a fallen, imperfect world we live in. In John 16:33, Jesus says, “Here on earth you will have trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” Life may not be easy, we may have to go through some dark valleys. But God does promise that no matter what we are walking through, he is always with us. He has overcome the world and its dark valleys, so take heart! No matter what you are going through or what life throws your way, you are never alone.
You are not in the valley because your faith is not strong enough or because you are being punished for doing something wrong. No, it is all about bringing glory to God. In John 9, Jesus is asked about a man who was born blind. Was he born like that because of his sins, or his parents’ sins? Jesus replied, “He was born blind so the power of God could be seen in him.” Maybe we go through these dark, scary valleys as a testimony to the power of God being with us, to show the peace that he brings even in the toughest situations.
Our walks through these valleys are a testimony to the comforting power of God’s presence and the strong hope and assurance that at the end of the day, he has overcome the world. One day, there will be no more pain or sorrows or tears (Revelations 21:4). I look forward to that day!
God did heal me. At the end of my treatment, the skin cancer was healed. I just had to walk a different journey to get there. I’m not saying God can’t heal miraculously, of course, he can. But that was not my journey, and in the end, it can still bring glory to God.
“Maybe we go through these dark, scary valleys as a testimony to the power of God being with us, to show the peace that he brings even in the toughest situations.”
When Grace Becomes Gratitude
