Valley of Weeping

"Blessed is the man whose strength is in You, Whose heart is set on pilgrimage. As they pass through the Valley of Baca, They make it a spring; The rain also covers it with pools. " -Psalm 84:5-6

Lately I have been in a "desert season," a season that caused me to shed many tears in anguish. In this season I have only been able to stand and walk through it, because the Lord is my strength. My heart is set on pilgrimage...I am dead set on reaching the other side of this season of trials...I am dead set on victory...and it has been the death of me...the death of self.

I have found myself in the Valley of Baca. The word Baca literally means "weeping." One thing that the Lord has used to strengthen me is that I know my tears are not shed in vain.  Psalm 56:8 says, "You number my wanderings; Put my tears into Your bottle; [Are they] not in Your book?" God knows every tear I've cried and I know He will use them for good (Rom. 8:28). How do I know? Besides seeing this truth time and again, He has brought someone into my life that has walked where I am walking now. Her tears shed in the desert have become a spring. And God is using her tears to refresh me in this dry season of trials.

There is something incredibly comforting when you know that the person you are talking to knows what you are going through. Sometimes a look is all it takes for her to know exactly what's going on and there is something so refreshing in that. God "comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God." -2 Cor. 1:4 The fact that God can take the desert places of our lives and turn them into pools of refreshment for those that will one day walk the same desert plane, gives me courage and strength to continue on.

Thank You Lord that You never leave nor forsake us. Thank You that You use all things for good. Thank You that you can take, what may seem like wasted tears, and turn them into refreshment for others. Thank You that we do not walk alone. And thank You for Your sweet comfort that refreshes the weary traveler.