You Don’t Need a Mountain Top Experience

(click on the pic to listen to it)

A myth that a lot of Christians believe is that God only leads us to the mountain top.
The fact is he also leads us through the valley.

Jesus had what we would call a mountain top experience in Matthew 3. It was an incredible moment when John the Baptist Him which marked the start of His ministry here on earth.  Just a few hours later in Matthew 4, the Spirit leads Jesus into the wilderness to be tested. This was not a mountain top experience for Jesus.

The reality is, (like Jesus) there will be valleys in the life of the believer. It is not a matter of if they come – it’s a matter of when they come. In those valleys we are tempted to give into the Enemy and take the easy way out.

Psalm 23:4 reminds us,

Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I shall fear no evil for you are with me.

Christians have this believe that if we are going through something painful or something messy or it is just one of those valley experiences when God seems distant – somehow God can’t be in it or a part of it. God actually leads Jesus into the wilderness to be tested. He was very much with Jesus when Satan showed up. I am not suggesting that God leads us to every trial, every messy situation, or every valley. Some times we mess up and create the mess ourselves.

King David’s lust for Bathsheba lead to an unexpected pregnancy; which lead to the murder of her husband; which lead King David lying about everything. This lead to family dysfunction, incest, more family murders, more political conflicts, and he left his whole family in a total disarray. All because of a one night fling with Bathsheba.

Sometimes there are situations we walk through that there are just no answers for. You look at the story of Job and Joseph and you can’t help shake your head and ask, “Why did they need to walk through the stuff they walked through?” Why do certain families walk through more pain than others? Why do some individuals seem to get their lion share of heartache and trials. The answer is – there is no answer.

Sometimes our obedience leads us to into a wilderness or trial. Look at Daniel, Shadrach, Meschach, and Abendego.   Daniel was thrown into the lion’s den for praying too much. Shadrach, Meschach, and Abendego were thrown into a fire because they wouldn’t bow down. Look at Jesus. His obedience led him to being mocked, persecuted, beaten, and nailed to a cross.

No matter how we get into messy situations, no matter what temptation we face, if we run from every messy situation, if we sweep everything that is thrown at us under the rug as if nothing is wrong, or if we are never tempted we will never experience the miraculous power of his deliverance. 

• A miracle needs a mess.
• Hope needs a hopeless situation.
• Joy needs a jumbled up life
• Victory needs a valley.

I am not suggesting you mess up your life so that you can experience a miracle. I am not suggesting your put yourself in a hopeless situation so that you can experience hope. I am not suggesting you jumble up your life so that you can experience joy.  Nor I am suggesting you create a valley to walk through so that you can experience a victory.

Our mess ups, our hopeless situations, our jumbled up lives, our valleys, and other “Help Me” Jesus experiences aren’t always a lot of fun to go through but without them (whether we created our situation or not) there’s not much need for God to show up. If we look at these situations in our lives as an opportunity instead of an obstacle,  God could do some amazing things in us.

King David needed God to show up! He created a mess of his life. God did show up and turned his mess into a message. Look at Psalm 51 and you can read the message.

Daniel needed God to show up! He showed up in the lion’s den by keeping the lions mouths shut.

Shadrach, Meschach, and Abendego needed God to show up! He showed by protecting them from the flames and the heat of the blazing furnace.

Jesus needed His Father to show up! He showed up in Jesus’ death by resurrecting Him from the grave.

None of these were mountain tops experiences for any of these people. But they all had one thing in common, they all remained obedient even in the face of death.

When being obedience leads to trials, or a valley, or a difficult stretch of life,  the Enemy is going to come and tempt you with a way of escape the same way he tempted Jesus with a way of escape. The Enemy always provides the easy out by providing a short cut. 

I almost took the short cut before I came here to this church 8 years ago. The temptation was to give up on the church. We had experienced a difficult 3 years in the church I was pastoring at. The temptation was just to give up on church ministry because it took time away from my family. It caused a lot of pain and disappointment. Pain and disappointment I could live without. I thought,  “It would be nice to be like a regular attendee and not have to show up on a Sunday morning.” “It would be nice to have a regular 40 hours a week job and not have to worry about why people don’t want a relationship with Christ or why people are not choosing to go to church any more.”  I wouldn’t have or need to think about that stuff anymore. It would have been very easy to take this shortcut and simply surrender. Those were real temptations. They were all shortcuts to an easier way of life.

I had interviewed at a couple of churches for children’s ministry positions. By their questions I’m sure I didn’t get those positions because I was a man. Disappointment and rejection set in.  I also had interviewed at a church about the size of this church. It had a modern facility. They had a gymnasium with a kitchen and class rooms. It was a dream situation to walk into. I wouldn’t have to raise any money. I could have taken this church that had everything I dreamed about having for doing ministry. Again …. a shortcut …. an easy way out to get what I wanted.

Then we interviewed at the present church we are in. After we interviewed here, my daughter Kaleigh said, “we’re coming here aren’t we?” How she knew that …. Is still a mystery to me. But I knew she was right. This was the place that God was calling us to. I needed to be obedient.

The shortcuts would have been a much easier way of life for me and lot of people would have told me that I was following God’s will. But I wouldn’t have been obedient.

It would be easier to give up following Jesus when things get tough. It would be a lot easier not to have to deal with temptation. It would be a lot easier to sweep things under the rug as if nothing happened. If we are  honest, many times, nobody would know that we have taken the easy out.

If you are going through a valley, or you are facing temptation, or you have given into temptation, or life has dealt you an unfair hand, the Enemy will also show up and provide you a short cut. He did it with Jesus and I am sure he will do it with you to.

There are two ways out or every trial you go through. There are two ways out of every temptation you face.There are two ways out of every valley that you walk through.There are two ways out of every mess up in life or unfair situation that comes your way.

Way #1 – The Enemy’s shortcut, which always involves compromise and disobedience.

Way #2 – The way of escape God promises to all who walk with Him.

1 Corinthians 10:13 – The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.

Why doesn’t God want us  to have a feel good mountain top experiences all the time? Why does God allow us to go through valleys? Why does God allow us to sin against Him? Why does God allow us to experience heart ache, pain, trial, tribulations, and all that other bad stuff that comes with life?

There are always lessons to be learned about our self and our relationship (or lack of) with God and there is character to be built (spiritual maturity) no matter what valley or what the cause.

Larry Osbourne says, “Going through a valley of injustice helps us to identify with the suffering of our Lord. A valley of pain helps us to empathize and support others who face the same. A valley of suffering teaches us obedience and trust. Even a valley of self-induced hardship can serve as a warning sign to never go there again.”

James tells his church in chapter 1:2-4, no matter what you face – rejoice always.

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

Trials, valleys, and the jumbled mess we make of our lives  have the potential to teach us lessons one could never learn elsewhere. James doesn’t talk about whether their persecution was the result God’s doing, the Enemy’s doing, or just a part of life in a fallen world. He dialed in on the one thing they could benefit from no matter what, the spiritual lessons of perseverance, character, and maturity.

The only way we learn these lessons we need to learn is when we walk through these valleys, when we make our life a jumbled mess, or when we walk through the unfair things we experience in this life. 

The Enemy will show up but you don’t have to fear Him or give in to His shortcuts because the Psalmist reminds us that He is with us.

Make a wrong turn in your life – He is with you.

Going through a dark time in your life – He is with you.

Going through some tough circumstances in life – He is with you.

God will lead – you just need to follow.