A friend of mine once told me that the Christian life is a series of life, death, and resurrection stories.

Things start off well enough, then get really bad before ending up in a better place than when you started. The shape of life looks something like this:

This theme shows up again and again in Scripture.

Creation

• Life: God created the world and it was very good (Genesis 1:31).
• Death: Sin entered the world and now creation groans (Genesis 3:17-19 & Romans 8:18-22).
• Resurrection: God will restore all things in the new heavens and new earth (Revelation 21:1-4 & 22:1-5).

Abraham

• Life: Abraham lived in his father’s house until he was 75 (Genesis 11:26-12:4).
• Death: God called him to leave home, live as a nomad, and wait 25 years until God provided a son (Genesis 15:1-5, 16:1-5, & 17:1-2).
• Resurrection: Abraham and Sarah rejoice in Isaac’s birth in their old age (Genesis 21:1-6).

Jacob

• Life: Had a strained relationship with his father and brother Esau, but was favored by his mother (Genesis 25:23-34).
• Death: Jacob fled from Esau after stealing his blessing, was cheated by his Uncle Laban for 15 years, and dislocated his hip wrestling with God (Genesis 27:1-32:32).
• Resurrection: Had 12 sons, was renamed Israel, and reconciled with Esau (Genesis 32:27-33:20).

Joseph

• Life: Was his father’s favorite son and had a beautiful coat (Genesis 37:1-11).
• Death: Over a period of thirteen years Joseph was beaten by his brothers, thrown into a pit, sold into slavery, falsely accused of sexual misconduct, and was thrown into prison (Genesis 37:12-36, 39:1-41:40).
• Resurrection: Joseph was freed from prison to be Pharaoh’s advisor. He was given a royal robe and saved his family (and millions more) from starvation (Genesis 41:41-45:28).

Moses

• Life: Was raised by Pharaoh’s daughter (Exodus 2:1-10 & Acts 7:17-22).
• Death: Killed a man then lived in the wilderness as a shepherd for 40 years (Exodus 2:11-22 & Acts 7:23-30).
• Resurrection: Moses returned to Egypt to deliver his people from slavery and speaks face to face with God (Exodus 3-14).

Hebrews

• Life: Were slaves in Egypt for 400 years.
• Death: Wandered in the wilderness for 40 years.
• Resurrection: Entered the promised land.

Job

• Life: Was a righteous and wealthy man (Job 1:1-5).
• Death: Job lost all of his children, his wealth, and his health. He was so depressed he cursed the day he was born (Job 1:6-3:26).
• Resurrection: Job came to a deeper understanding of God’s character and received twice the amount of possessions (Job 42:1-17).

David

• Life: Was anointed by Samuel to be the next king, won fame through his military exploits (1 Samuel 16-17).
• Death: David ran from King Saul as the king sought to kill him (1 Samuel 18-31).
• Resurrection: David became King in Jerusalem and brought peace and stability to the land (2 Samuel 5-6).

Psalm 23

• Life: Lack nothing, green pastures, quiet waters, refreshed soul (Psalm 23:1-3).
• Death: Valley of the Shadow of Death (Psalm 23:4).
• Resurrection: Dwell in the house of the LORD forever (Psalm 23:6).

Jonah

• Life: The word of the Lord came to Jonah (Jonah 1:1).
• Death: Jonah ran from God and ended up in the belly of a fish for 3 days (Jonah 1:3-2:9).
• Resurrection: The fish vomited up Jonah and he preached to the city of Nineveh leading to repentance (Jonah 2:10-3:10).

Jesus (Part 1)

• Life: Jesus lived a sinless life.
• Death: He was betrayed and rejected by his friends, was mocked, beaten, and crucified.
• Resurrection: He rose from the dead on the third day.

Jesus (Part 2)

• Life: Jesus was one with God in heaven (Philippians 2:6).
• Death: Jesus was born of Mary, lived, and died on the cross (Philippians 2:7-8).
• Resurrection: Jesus ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father (Philippians 2:9-11).

Saint Paul

• Life: Advanced in Judaism beyond his contemporaries, was zealous for the traditions of his ancestors (Galatians 1:13-14).
• Death: Paul encountered Jesus, fell off his high horse (literally), and was blind for 3 days (Acts 9:1-9).
• Resurrection: “But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (Philippians 3:7-8).

God’s Promise to Those in Christ

As we see, almost every hero in the bible experienced a season in the wilderness or in the pit. The wilderness and pit are places of suffering, loneliness, and waiting. There is always a humbling before exaltation. Sometimes we humble ourselves. Other times life humbles us.

If things are going well for you now, praise God! But know that these times don’t last forever.

If you are in the pit, take heart! God promises, not only to bring you out of the pit, but to put you on higher ground. Although, sometimes we have to wait until the next life for God to do that.

Also, I admit that the image above is a bit too simple. It shows the overall trend of life, but fails to capture all of the highs and lows that we will experience. The Christian life looks more like the Dow Jones from the last 100 years:

We see many ups and downs, but the trajectory over the long run is up. Our problem is that we lack the perspective to see what the outcomes will be. In the chart, we see a massive decline from 1966-1983. But from 1983-1999 there was massive growth, ending with more than double the 1966 amount. I can imagine many people being so discouraged in the early 80’s that they took their money out of the stock market. But if they would have held on a little bit longer, they would have quadrupled their investment.

It is the same for us. Sometimes life feels so hard and disappointing that it takes everything in us to not give up. We might even resonate with Job’s wife when she told her husband to “Curse God and die!” (Job 2:9).

I don’t know how long your valley will last, but I promise that it won’t last forever. God also promises that he will never leave you or forsake you. He is with you, grieving and groaning on your behalf.

Because Jesus rose from the dead, those who believe in him will also be raised with him. “Where, oh death is your victory? Where, oh death, is your sting?” If you are in the valley, remember that a resurrection is coming.

A resurrection is coming.