June 15th, 2010 
Dana Fisher Make this valley full of ditches. For this is what the LORD says: You will see neither wind nor rain, yet this valley will be filled with water, and you, your cattle and your other animals will drink. This is an easy thing in the eyes of the LORD; he will also hand Moab over to you. You will overthrow every fortified city and every major town. You will cut down every good tree, stop up all the springs, and ruin every good field with stones. ~2 Kings 3:16-19
My pastor used the above passage in his sermon last week and while it wasn’t so much “in passing”, it definitely wasn’t the focal point of his message. Yet, like that piece of sidewalk gum stuck to the bottom of your shoe that you just can’t seem to scrape off, it just keeps sticking in the forefront of my mind. I wonder how many times I’ve read 2 Kings and more notably how many times I’ve just glossed over this as another story about a prophet of God doing prophet things without actually stopping to think about it.
On a side note: I have a tough time with the Old Testament a lot of times and find myself almost reading it like a drone on occasion, with my mind off in la-la land. This sort of hit me hard that there definitely is a wealth of information(which I did know already) there if I take the time to really dig.
If you read through these blog posts you’ll see evidence of a life just like yours. Ups and downs, trials and triumphs and right now is no different. While I’m going through some things on my own, those around me seem to be going through equally hard times. It’s a tough pill to swallow when you want to help those in need but need to take care of yourself too. The stress can be overwhelming and it’s easy to feel dried up and frustrated.
Make this valley full of ditches. A pretty simple statement, monumentally powerful in it’s own right. I’m in a rut, I’m struggling and grasping with issues and the Lord says “Keep digging!” I was reading this passage on the train, jotting down notes as I went, and I wrote “Don’t walk away from the problem, hit it in the face with a shovel!” Extreme? Maybe, but for me the point is you can cower and walk away from the problem or you can hit it with the full force of the power of God. Keep digging!
But digging can be monotonous and tiring. How long do you dig? When does the frustration become so overwhelming that giving up seems like the best and most realistic option? As a typical guy I want the problem fixed NOW, yesterday would be better, but reality tells me these things take time and there are leassons to be learned. Maybe you’ve been dealing with the problem for a couple days, maybe it’s been 30yrs, or a lifetime. Verse 17 of 2 Kings 3 tells me how long to continue and the answer isn’t easy: until it’s complete. He says you’re gonna be dry, you’re gonna be burnt out. There’s going to be no breeze to cool you down, no rain to soak up your problem but your valley will be full of water and you will drink. What a great picture. Struggling and scratching and crawling through a problem when you feel there is no end but keep digging, keep trusting in God and let him fill your valley and reward your faithfulness. Let him quench your thirst, for those who drink of Him shall thirst no more(John 4:14)
Out in Denver they have what’s called the “fourteeners”. It’s a group of 14,000ft mountains in the rockies. Nearly impenitrable most of the year due to heavy snow capped peaks, they are passable for but a few months in the middle of the summer. And maybe thats how you feel, if you just wait it out they’ll be an opening at some point that you can pass on through. Verse 18 spells it out. “This is an easy thing in the eyes of the LORD”. Your gigantic mountain is but a small ant hill to the Lord, trampled under his sandal. There is no waiting needed, don’t sit on your butt and hope for safe passage. It’s easy for Him!
With the Lord you will take down every wall Satan has built up. You will tear the very fabric of possibilities. Supreme confidence is yours as you walk in the shadow of His wings. Verse 19 then confirms this. You will overthrow the fortified city, cut down the trees, and stop up the springs! That power is the Lords.
There is a beaver dam in Canada which can be seen from space. It’s nearly 2,800ft long and they estimate the beavers started working on it sometime in the 1970′s. That’s a looooong time to be trying to plug a hole. Yet they don’t give up and keep on filling it in. It wasn’t built in a day and whatever struggle your entagled with won’t be instantly fixed. The blueprint is there in 2 Kings 3: dig. keep digging, allow the Lord to fill you, recognize that it’s easy for Him, and move in step with Him as you take down the walls. Hit that thing in the face with a shovel.
Posted in 
Tags: 
