Valley of Vision

Flower in Morning Sun

photo credit






Where there is no vision, the people perish...

- Proverbs 29:18




Write the vision
And make it plain on tablets,
That he may run who reads it.

For the vision is yet for an appointed time;
But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie.
Though it tarries, wait for it;
Because it will surely come,
It will not tarry.

- Habakkuk 2:2-3

We may have shining moments of inspiration on the mountain tops, but most of our lives take place down in the valleys.

I remember being admonished by Hans Burki, the Swiss retreat director that I have mentioned on some of my previous blog posts, as we were about to end the month long retreat we had up in the Alps, "Live out in the valleys what you have experienced up here in the mountains."

As my friends and I left Rasa to go back to Zurich, and eventually to our own countries, I looked forward to the weeks ahead of me with a sense of excitement and several noble intentions.

My peak experiences had equipped me with new tools to do some changes in my life, and I was ready and eager to work on those changes right away.

The month we spent up in the Swiss Alps to personally experience the spiritual disciplines of solitude, meditation, and contemplation under Hans was such a life changing experience for me.

I really thought it would be easy to apply and live out the spiritual principles we were taught.

But later I realized that down here in the valley, life was different. Up in the mountains there were no distractions, it was easier to focus, and to concentrate.

Down in the valley of everyday life, it was another story.


Being a city girl, I have not experienced what it's like to live in a real valley -- that stretch of low land lying between hills or mountains, and usually having a stream or a river flowing through it.

It's good to know God does not require me to live out my life in a literal valley.

I really am not a valley kind of person, I prefer to spend my time up in the mountains.

However, time in the valley is very important for growth. The valley is where the battles of life are fought, where I learn to strike the right balance between activity and inner silence, where I become adept at hearing the voice of God above the noise and empty chatter around me, and where I gain the skills in making God honoring choices as I travel on.

Then I give myself time to be recharged, renewed, and refreshed by going up the mountain regularly.

It isn't so easy to reach a mountain where I live, but I have discovered that there are wonderful "mountain substitutes" right where I am!

What are these mountains that I speak of?

My bedroom, for one, is a spiritual mountain for me...

my prayer room...

a coffee shop, especially Starbucks.

One or two afternoons a week I would buy me a Cafe Latte grande, find a comfortable spot, bring out my Bible, my books, my prayer journal, and sometimes, my laptop...and for the next three or four hours spend a most delightful time, just me and God, up on that "mountain."

But one can't stay up in the mountains forever. Before too long, it's time to go down to the valley again.

Cagayan Valley, Philippines photo credit

Yes, it's great to be up on the mountain, but the valley is where we need to go to have our spiritual faculties sharpened, tested and proven.

Recently I came to realize that vision is not gained up in the mountains of our lives.

We get perspective from the mountain, but vision is gained down in the valley.

Vision is a way of seeing, using our spiritual eyes to see beneath the surface, beyond what our natural eyes are looking at.

Vision is discernment, or perception.

We need to have a vision of what God has called you and me to be.

We need to have a vision of where our journey is taking us.

We need to have an understanding if our provisions are adequate, or if they are running low.

Vision is vital, for without it we will certainly lose our way.

Vision can be likened to a road map, although unlike a literal map, the specifics will not always be clearly spelled out.

We gain that much-needed vision while we are in the valley.

Boxley Valley Sunrise

On a more personal note, things began to fall into place for me when I saw the vision of what God has called me to be. I have already shared part of this vision on the sidebar of my blog, as well as in several of my earlier posts.

God is calling you and me to know Him more, but unless we are willing to spend time in the valley where our faulty spiritual foundations are exposed, we will find it difficult to make spiritual progress.

In our heart of hearts there is always a longing to go deeper, to see beyond... Do you know what I mean? It almost feels like a burning ache, a continual hunger for something more.

This longing did not originate with us, it was placed there by God, for this really is what God desires of each one of us His children. He doesn't want us to just know about him intellectually, he wants us to have a true encounter with Him.

And it is down in the valleys of our lives where we come face to face with this hunger, that deep longing to be satisfied.

Being involved in a deep level healing ministry, I have seen the many ways that this hunger drives men and women into many false and harmful ways of seeking satisfaction.

And the valley, if we stay there long enough, is where we come to understand that this ache...this longing... this hunger, was given by God and that He alone is the One who can answer it!




God invites us to spend time in the valleys of life to discover for ourselves the many ways by which He reveals this truth to us.

Spending time in these valleys has truly changed me.

It continually amazes me to realize that in these valleys are many God-ordained opportunities for the diligent seeker to find Him, draw closer to His heart, and receive satisfaction for the spiritual longings of our hearts.


There is the Valley of Achor, literally a valley of trouble or temptation. Yet this valley has opened up for me a door of hope, a place of rest, singing, and restoration.

There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. Hosea 2:15

Sharon will be a pasture land for flocks, and the valley of Achor a resting place for herds, for My people who seek Me. Isaiah 65:10


I have also spent time in the Valley of Baca, literally a "valley of tears." But surprisingly, this valley was the place where I regained my strength, and when I watered it with my tears, the tears became a refreshing pool of encouragement and new strength for the journey ahead.

Blessed are those whose strength is in you, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage.As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a place of springs;the autumn rains also cover it with pools. They go from strength to strength... Psalm 84:5-7


Among my favorite valleys to visit is the Valley of Gerar, it literally means the valley of rumination, or meditation. It is the valley where Isaac dwelt for a time, watered by the wells of Abraham that Isaac dug again after they were stopped up by the Philistines.

Understandably, this valley is such a special place for me.

So Isaac moved away from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar and settled there. Isaac reopened the wells that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, Genesis 26:17-18


There are other valleys...

the valley of the shadow of death, where I discovered the comfort of the Shepherd's care (Psalm 23)...

the valley of Elah, that fearful place of confrontation where David slayed Goliath, and it became a valley of vindication (1 Samuel 21)...

the valley of burial in Moab where Moses' body was laid to rest (Deuteronomy 34:6).

There is the valley of decision, or the Valley of Jehoshaphat, where the nations will be gathered in the last days and will be judged on the basis of how they have treated the nation of Israel (Joel 3).

And of course, the valley of vision, the best place to learn how to prepare ourselves for the day of adversity and judgment (Isaiah 22).

Death Valley

More than the idyllic, pastoral scenes depicted by the pictures, the valley is where God calls us out of our comfort zones, that we may learn to endure and persevere, and depend on Him alone.

Here we grapple with the routine, the mundane, and sometimes ugly and pain-filled issues confronting us. This valley is real, not a beautiful painting on exhibit.

Cancer, financial reversals, a rebellious daughter, a son caught in the web of drug abuse or alcoholism, adultery...and what about old age, or just the daily grind, the exhaustion of working at a job that has ceased to be meaningful for us... these are just some of the issues we may be facing in our individual valleys.

But truly, God intends for us to run to Him, to cling to Him, to cry out to Him in our valleys...that we may know the truth that He walks with us in our journey, and in knowing, be transformed.

It is truly a place of being re-aligned and re-positioned for His purposes, where God brings us out into a broad place, a larger place of understanding the ultimate goal He has for you, and for me: to experience the reality of His love.

Indeed, the valley is that special place where vision and encouragement for the next step of the journey are given.

Sunrise, Yosemite Valley
by Albert Bierstadt

Lord, high and holy, meek and lowly,

Thou hast brought me to the valley of vision, where I live in the depths but see Thee in the heights; hemmed in by mountains of sin I behold Thy glory.

Let me learn by paradox that the way down is the way up,
that to be low is to be high,
that the broken heart is the healed heart,
that the contrite spirit is the rejoicing spirit,
that the repenting soul is the victorious soul,
that to have nothing is to possess all,
that to bear the cross is to wear the crown,
that to give is to receive,
that the valley is the place of vision.

Lord, in the daytime stars can be seen from deepest wells,
and the deeper the wells the brighter Thy stars shine;
let me find Thy light in my darkness,
Thy life in my death,
Thy joy in my sorrow,
Thy grace in my sin,
Thy riches in my poverty,
Thy glory in my valley.

The Valley of Vision, A Collection of Puritan Prayers and Devotions

Antelope Valley, California
photo credit

Be Thou My Vision

translated from Old Irish by Mary Byrne
English versification by Eleanor Hull

Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart,

Naught be all else to me, save that thou art;

Thou my best thought by day or by night,

Waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.

Be thou my wisdom, thou my true word,

I ever with thee and thou with me Lord;

Thou my great Father, I thy true son;

Thou in me dwelling, and I with thee one.

Be thou my battle shield, sword for the fight;

Be thou my dignity, thou my delight;

Thou my soul's shelter, thou my high tower:

Raise thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man's empty praise:

Thou mine inheritance now and always;

Thou and thou only first in my heart;

High King of Heaven, my treasure thou art.

High King of heaven, my victory won,

May I reach heaven's joys, O Bright Heaven's sun!;

Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,

Still be my vision, O Ruler of all.