In 1960, seminary student Junior Hill told his little rural Mississippi church that if people of another race came to worship, he hoped they would open the doors and welcome them with the love of the Lord. The deacons voted him out that week. In his grief, he found the pilgrim’s psalm about passing through the Valley of Baca, the valley of weeping, and wrote a message that would stay with other believers for decades. Troubles are universal, unavoidable, unexplainable, often unseen by others, unhurried, and unenjoyable. But they are always tempered by time, and God’s processes should never be mistaken for His purposes, which are always good, holy, and right. In the dry valley, a pilgrim digs a well, and the heavy dew keeps him alive. When the rains finally come, that same well fills up for those who come behind him. There is joy after the valley of weeping for those who trust the Lord.
Scripture: Psalms: 84:5-6
