Title: Sheep Found In The Valley
Text: Deut 8:1-5
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Introduction:
A man found a cocoon of an emperor moth and took it home so he could watch the moth come out of the cocoon. One day a small opening appeared. The man sat and watched the moth for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. To the man it appeared as if the moth had gotten as far as it could in breaking out of the cocoon and was stuck.
Out of kindness the man decided to help the moth. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon so that the moth could get out. Soon the moth emerged, but it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man continued to watch the moth, expecting that in time the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would simultaneously contract to its proper size.
Neither happened. In fact, that little moth spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It was never able to fly.
The man in his kindness and haste didn’t understand that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the moth to get through the tiny opening were God’s way of forcing fluid from the body into the wings so that the moth would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.
- Just as the moth could only achieve freedom and flight as a result of struggling, we often need to struggle to become all God intends for us to be.
- Sometimes we wish that God would remove our struggles and take away all the obstacles; but just as the man crippled the emperor moth, so we would be crippled if God did that for us.
- God doesn’t take away our problems and difficulties, but he promises to be with us in the midst of them and to use them to restore us, making us into better, stronger people.
- In our text the Lord brought testings and troubles to His people in the desert in order to teach them that our well being both (Physically and Spiritually depends on our relationship to God and obedience to His word.
- God wants us to depend more on Him and be more willing to accept His word.
Transition:
- So we know that struggles stretches us and makes us more like God. But how do I endure the suffering I go through? How do I endure the valley experiences that we all face in life?
- The answer is simple, having a purpose.
- Knowing that God uses my valley experiences to make me more like Him can bring a sense of comfort. There comes a security knowing that God is making you more like Him.
- What kind of purpose can valley experiences bring to the Christian?
Point 1: Valley Experiences Is Necessary To Get Our Attention
Writer Charles Swindoll once found himself with too many commitments in too few days. He got nervous and tense about it. "I was snapping at my wife and our children, choking down my food at mealtimes, and feeling irritated at those unexpected interruptions through the day," he recalled in his book Stress Fractures. "Before long, things around our home started reflecting the patter of my hurry-up style. It was become unbearable.
"I distinctly remember after supper one evening, the words of our younger daughter, Colleen. She wanted to tell me something important that had happened to her at school that day. She began hurriedly, ’Daddy, I wanna tell you somethin’ and I’ll tell you really fast.’ "Suddenly realizing her frustration, I answered, ’Honey, you can tell me -- and you don’t have to tell me really fast. Say it slowly." "I’ll never forget her answer: ’Then listen slowly.’"
- We are so busy, that sometimes struggles can be used by God to get our attention.
- We need to slow down our minds as Christians and listen to what God is trying to say to us.
- It’s hard for us to listen, to people, family and even God. Our attention span is not very long.
- They say........
The average adult attention span is 6 minutes. That’s why the Tonight Show has a commercial break about every 6 minutes!
- God will stretch us to go longer then 6 minutes.
I Sam 5:6-7 says, “The Lord’s hand was heavy upon the people of Ashdod and it’s vicinity; He brought devastation upon them and afflicted them with tumors. When the men of Ashdod saw what was happening, they said, the ark of the God of Israel must not stay here with us, because His hand is heavy upon us and upon Dagon our god.”
- The people of Ashdod had just witnessed a great victory over there god Dagon. But they didn’t act upon there revelation until they were inflicted with tumors.
- Today many people don’t respond to biblical truth until they experience pain or suffering.
- Like that old saying goes, some people learn things the hard way.
- We need to willing listen to what the Bible says, and not just turn to God when we are when the flesh is being tested.
- God’s desire is to make us more like Him, therefore we need to expand our attention span, slow down and learn to listen to the voice of God.
- Lets learn to respond to the Bible first in all things before we go through the valley experiences.
- In striving to follow the Bible first, we are building our faith and attention towards God.
Point 2: Valley Experiences Is Necessary To Test Our Commitment.
Matt 16:25 says, “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.”
In Russia, Christians are tested by hardship, but in America you are tested by freedom. And testing by freedom is much harder. Nobody pressures you about your religion. So you relax and are not so concentrated on Christ, on His teaching, how He wants you to live."
- Real discipleship implies real commitment.
- If we try to save our physical life from death, pain, or discomfort, we may risk losing eternal life.
- If we protect our self from pain, we begin to die spiritually and emotionally.
- Our lives turn inward and we lose our intended purpose.
- When we daily give our lives in service to Jesus, we discover the real purpose of living.
Point 3: Valley Experiences Is Necessary For Growth
A company, feeling it was time for a shakeup and growth, hires a new CEO. This new boss is determined to rid the company of all slackers. On a tour of the Facilities, the CEO notices a guy leaning on a wall. The room is full of workers and he wants
to let them know he means business!
The CEO walks up to the guy and asks, "And how much money do you make a week?"
A little surprised, the young fellow looks at him and replies, "I make $300.00 a week. Why?"
The CEO then hands the guy $1,200 in cash and screams, "Here’s four weeks’ pay, now GET OUT and don’t come back!"
Feeling pretty good about his first firing, the CEO looks around the room and asks, "Does anyone want to tell me what that goof off did here?"
With a sheepish grin, one of the other workers mutters, "Pizza delivery guy from Domino’s".
Hebrews 12:2 says, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning it’s shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
- When we face difficulty and discouragement, it is easy to lose sight of the big picture.
- God sees our beginning and the end of our life.
- Valley experiences is the training ground for Christian maturity, to make us what God already sees.
- It’s our job to yield to God’s refining in our lives, because He sees our potential of what we can become.
- It develops our patience and makes our final victory sweet.
Point 4: Pain is Necessary To Experience God’s Power And Grace.
Matt 8:16-17 says, “When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to Him, and He drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases.”
- Matt all through his book shows the Kingship of Jesus.
- He shows and proves that Jesus had all authority on earth.
- Jesus healed, delivered and set free people and Matt records those events to show us Jesus is Lord of all.
- When we receive devastating news, it is an opportunity to receive God’s grace and power in our lives.
- We need to reach out to Him in faith right until the very end.
- Now sickness and evil are consequences of living in a fallen world.
- But in the future, when God removes all sin, there will be no more pain, sickness or death.
- Jesus healing miracles were a taste of what the whole world will one day experience in God’s Kingdom.
- But it’s also for now. Let God’s glory fall now, let people be healed and set free now.
- Lets pray God’s Kingdom into our situations.
Conclusion:
The story is told about the baptism of King Aengus by St. Patrick in the middle of the fifth century. Sometime during the rite, St. Patrick leaned on his sharp-pointed staff and inadvertently stabbed the king’s foot. After the baptism was over, St. Patrick looked down at all the blood, realized what he had done, and begged the king’s forgiveness. Why did you suffer this pain in silence, the Saint wanted to know. The king replied, "I thought it was part of the ritual."
- Well we know that stabbing someone is not part of the ritual in water baptism, but pain and suffering in the life of a Christian is.
- We can not escape valley experiences.
- But we need to look at our trials as blessings. Because they will produce in us character that God wants us to have. (Deut 8:2-3)
- Some situations that we go through are unavoidable and catch us by surprise.
- But if we will just keep our eyes on Jesus He will see us through.
- So God uses trials because......
A. It gets our attention
B. Tests our commitment
C. Helps Us Grow
D. God’s Power and Grace are Experienced.
- There is purpose in suffering, allow the Lord to build you and stretch you as a person.
Lets Pray!!!
