Mountain Tops and Valley Lows

There is a time for everything,
    and a season for every activity under the heavens…

Some years ago, while riding home with my older sister, I began to explain to her how blessed our family was. “Mom and dad are well off, even through recession we are still able to afford our expenses, we are all in school and doing well, we are surrounded by friends who love us and vice versa, we are all in stable relationships, and most importantly no one in our family has ever been sick or gone to the hospital.” These were my exact thoughts.

 Little did I know, I was not going to be at the top of the mountain for much longer; and when it rains, believe me it pours! In the blink of an eye, I found my self at my valley low. I went from a stable relationship to one heart break after another, life long friends soon became acquaintances, family assets vanished within the 35 seconds that the earthquake in Haiti lasted, I found my self having to take a year off from school to take care of my father who was injured  during the earthquake, couple of months after my father was treated from his injuries and recovered from three surgeries, I am sitting inside an ambulance with my mother who has suffered a massive pulmonary embolism and was admitted into ICU for three weeks.

It all happened so suddenly… no warnings, no how to’s. no training. Just me and my circumstances. I admit there were days that were much harder than others. But through it all I kept a spirit of gratitude. No matter what it was that I was going through I knew that things could have been much worst. I knew that I still had plenty of reasons to be grateful. Most importantly I knew that I was not going to be stuck in my valley. I knew that some way, some how, God was going to  bring me back to the top of the mountain. Certainly not as fast as I would want, but when he saw fit. I’ve learned that you should never get too comfortable in life because at any time, God has the ability to turn your situations around. How else would your faith be tested if he didn’t bring you through trials? While in the valley, God worked on my pride, my perception of life and friends, and showed me the value of the things that I took for granted in life. The most important thing that I learned while in my valley was that I am never alone, even when I feel at my lowest. I remember a particular night when I was laying down in my tears, suffocating from all the anger that I had built up inside, and i remember saying “God please show me that you are with me, please give me a sign.” I suddenly felt a cool breeze over my body, and felt like someone was rocking me in their arms. The next thing I remember was waking up the next morning wondering when and how i fell asleep. That night felt God, He was with me, and I knew that I was never alone. 

When you are going through your valley lows, keep in mind that when you are tried in the fire, you come out as gold. after God has brought you out of your valley and back on your mountain top, you no longer worry the next time that life knocks you back down, because you have been there before, and you know that He will never leave you down at the valley. Life is made of mountain tops and valley lows. You will experience both. If you haven’t you will, because that is how you are going to grow. What you must do is to ensure that while in your valley, you do not lose strength or courage. keep sight of the mountain top, trust and believe that in due time, after he has prepared you to receive the blessings that he has prepared for you, he will carry you back to your mountain top.