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God Of The Valleys

October 30, 2019


Dear Praying Friends,


Rachel and I greatly value each of you and thank you from our hearts for your desire to pray for our prodigals and for revival among us.


The death of Truett Foster McKeehan last week was a real shock. Truett was the twenty-one-year-old son of famous Christian hip hop (rapper), TobyMac. He and his wife Amanda have five beautiful children, and now one of them is in heaven. Truett died suddenly and unexpectedly in their Nashville, Tennessee home.


TobyMac, whose real name is Keven McKeehan wrote on his Facebook page,


Truett Foster McKeehan had joy that took the room when he entered. He was a magnetic son and brother and friend. If you met him, you knew him, you remembered him.

As for his eldest son’s faith, TobyMac said that Truett always had a soft spot in his heart for God, noting the Bible moved him, although he wasn’t a cookie-cutter Christian.


He also shared the final text message exchange he had with McKeehan in which he praised his son for his amazing show in Tennessee. He told his son he had infectious joy and said how “very, very, very proud” of him he was. In response, McKeehan wrote, “Love you, dad. Thank you so much. You have always believed in me, make me feel like a superhero. TobyMac added:


My wife and I would want the world to know that we don’t follow God because we have some sort of under the table deal with Him like we’ll follow you if you bless us. We follow God because we love Him. It’s our honor. He is the God of the hills and the valleys. And He is beautiful above all things.

I cannot imagine the pain of losing a child, but when I read this last sentence of TobyMac’s, I was awed at his depth of faith in God. I have witnessed it recently in others, like my good friend Ross, who lost his wife back a few months ago. It is an attitude that transcends the limits of human capability and reaches into reservoirs of divine strength. It is easy to believe God when life seems good and we’re high on the mountain, but the reality is tested when we descend into the dark valley of grief and suffering. This was the experience of David when he wrote the twenty-third psalm:


A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever (Ps. 23).

The message Paul brought to the Ephesian Gentiles, was that once they were far away from God, but now they were brought near (Eph. 2:13). To be brought near is a salvation event, but it is also a lifetime of being in the presence of God and walking with him, as TobyMac explained, through the hills and also through the valleys. Are you in a valley today? Do the circumstances of life seem unfair and more than you can bear? Remember that no matter how dark your valley, you are not walking through it alone. Your God lovingly walks with you, step by painful step.


The words of Linda Randle’s song express this truth:


“God On The Mountain” 


Life is easy, when you're up on the mountain

And you've got peace of mind, like you've never known.

But things change, when you're down in the valley.

Don't lose faith, for you're never alone.


For the God on the mountain, is the God in the valley.

When things go wrong, He'll make them right.

And the God of the good times is still God in the bad times.

The God of the day is still God in the night.


We talk of faith way up on the mountain.

Talk comes so easy when life's at its best.

Now down in the valleys, of trials and temptations

That's where your faith, is really put to the test.


For the God on the mountain is the God in the valley.

When things go wrong, He'll make them right.

And the God of the good times is still God in the bad times.


The God of the day, is still God in the night.

The God of the day, is still God in the night.



Thanks again for praying,


Bryan and Rachel



Photo Credit: Benjamin Joyce

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