As I listened to a new worship album, a particular song came on. It echoed Scriptures the Lord brought to mind during some pivotal valley moments in my life. Back then, those verses were reminders of His promises. This time, they became reminders of His faithfulness. As I listened, I realized where I was then is not where I am now. Praise God.
The next morning, as I sat down to write, I found myself still meditating on it. We were under an air quality alert as wildfires burned across our state. Some homes and businesses were spared. Others were not. More families had been displaced.
It reminded me of questions we ask in everyday life. Why did they get the job, but I didn’t? Why have they experienced physical healing while I’m still waiting? Why has restoration come to their finances and not mine?
At some point, many of us have quietly wondered, Why did God do it for them, but not me? Especially when it’s another believer—or even someone sitting a few rows away at church.
In an effort to encourage, we sometimes hear things like, “You just need more faith.” But what does that actually mean?
“Believe harder.” “Be stronger.” How?
Can faith simply be switched on like a light? Sometimes, a decision to trust God is exactly where faith begins. But perhaps that’s the beginning of the journey, not the end.
I’ve found myself at this exact starting point before… okay, maybe more than once.
We often look at the mountaintop as proof that our faith is strong. Then, when we find ourselves in the valley, we’re left wondering what went wrong. Why are we in the valley? It’s easy to wonder whether God is behind what’s happening, or whether we’ve somehow done something wrong. Yet Scripture shows a much richer picture of why we sometimes find ourselves in the valley.
1. Living in a Fallen World
Some valley moments come simply as a result of living in a fallen world. Creation was forever affected by the fall. We live in a world where we experience illness, grief, loss, waiting, and ordinary suffering. The experiencing of these things is not necessarily evidence that our faith is weak.
But God. He sent His Son. We can now rest in John 16:33, “… Here on earth you will have many trails and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” Jesus didn’t promise the absence of problems. He promised He would be with us.
2. Cause-and-Effect / Stewardship
These situations typically come about as natural consequences of choices. Whether of our own making or the choices of others that affect us.
Sometimes we ignore wisdom because we think we know better.
It could also come through poor stewardship. You got into that car accident because you kept putting off stewarding the care of your vehicle by having the brakes fixed.
Or even through basic life decisions. Every choice we make has a result, and yes, not making a choice is in itself a choice.
These situations aren’t quite the same as living in a fallen world. They’re also not an automatic judgement for lack of faith. They’re often an invitation to repentance, wisdom, or better stewardship.
3. God’s Forming / Sanctifying Work
These are the seasons where we’re being matured, refined, and formed by God.
Valleys often become places where we discover God as our Source in deeper ways. In Philippians 4:11-13 (NLT), Paul says he learned the secret of living in every situation. Through every season—whether in abundance or need—he came to know and trust God as his Source.
Valleys are not punishment or necessarily the result of poor choices. They can be part of the sanctification process.
Oversimplification
And I wonder… have we oversimplified the meaning of “not having enough faith” by inadvertently flattening these three very distinct situations? When in reality, discernment asks:
- Is this simply life in a fallen world?
- Is this the result of choices where wisdom and stewardship are needed?
- Is this part of God’s refining work?
These are not all the same. Though there is a constant throughline in all three: God remains our Source—in all things.
✨Circumstances simply reveal who or what I’m trusting. But they do not determine who God is.✨
Faith in Scripture isn’t usually presented as believing harder. It’s trusting a Person more deeply. The person of Christ. It reminds me of something I saw recently,
“Faith is not believing more facts about God. Faith is learning to trust the heart of the God you are coming to know.”
~ Author Unknown
It’s not because we “poofed” or white-knuckled ourselves into stronger faith, but because God faithfully formed us as we chose to keep walking with Him.
Take heart and know there is hope. Growth is expected, and sanctification isn’t evidence that your faith is deficient. It’s one of the primary ways God matures us. So if you find yourself in a valley, don’t immediately assume it’s because you’re broken, failing or simply “don’t have enough faith.” Perhaps the wiser question to ask God is: What kind of valley am I actually walking through?
Because sometimes the obstacle is simply part of living in a fallen world. Sometimes it’s an invitation into greater wisdom and stewardship. Sometimes it’s God’s refining work within us. And sometimes… the answer is far more practical than we realize.
In the weeks ahead, we’ll begin exploring one kind of struggle we can often do something about: unnecessary friction. While we can’t remove every hardship in life, we can learn to recognize—and often remove—the unnecessary obstacles that make faithful living harder than it needs to be.
Until then… remember this: the valley doesn’t change who God is.