In The Valley
I’ve always heard about mountaintop experiences.
Songs about being on top of the world.
Stories about reaching the peak.
Moments where everything finally comes together.
We celebrate the top.
But I was reading this week and something caught me.
“In the valley, He restores my soul.”
Psalm 23:3
That stopped me.
Because when I think about a valley, I don’t think about struggle first.
I think about places like Waipiʻo Valley in Hawaii.
Lush.
Green.
Water moving.
Life everywhere.
It’s the kind of place where things grow.
And then I thought about every mountaintop I’ve ever stood on.
The view is incredible.
You can see for miles.
But it’s not where you stay.
It’s dry.
Exposed.
Demanding.
You don’t build a life there.
You visit it.
The climb takes something out of you.
The air gets thinner.
The margin gets smaller.
And the higher you go, the less there is to sustain you.
That made me think…
Maybe we’ve been chasing the wrong thing.
Maybe the top is for perspective.
But the valley is for restoration.
The top shows you how far you’ve come.
The valley gives you what you need to keep going.
I’ve had seasons where I wanted to stay at the top.
Where I thought that’s what winning looked like.
But the truth is, every time I’ve been worn down,
every time I’ve needed something real…
It wasn’t the peak that restored me.
It was the place I didn’t think to value.
The lower ground.
The slower pace.
The place where life actually grows again.
I’m starting to think the valley isn’t something to avoid.
It might be the place we’re meant to return to.
What’s been your experience?
Have you found more in the climb… or in the place where you recovered from it?
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