“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” John 1:5 (NIV) / Pixabay
You might find this strange, but one of the things this city girl had to adjust to when I moved to rural West Virginia was how dark it was at night. I know, I know night is supposed to be dark but when the sun goes down here, it is DARK!
The unfamiliar inky blackness of living in the midst of farmland and the shadows of mountains is quite unsettling when you’re used to street lamps, neon signs, and porch lights illuminating the way. It wasn’t until my then fiancée went home with me that he finally understood dark and DARK!
As with so much of this beautiful place I now call home, I’ve come to love the DARK. Why you ask? Because in the DARK you can see the light! The night sky here is a spectacular sight! Standing in my yard on a clear evening, the brightest lights around are the stars, planets, and Milky Way shining down from the vast heavens. I’d never have experienced this amazing light show had I not stood in the DARK.
Isn’t life just like that? As much as we (I) don’t want to venture into those DARK, we can’t see how everything’s going to turn out places; that’s exactly where we experience the beauty of light. It may be a flicker, but in the DARK a flicker is all it takes to brighten our way. Maybe it’s a meal provided by a friend, a card or phone call, flowers, a visit, or an offered prayer. When it feels we’ll never find our way out of the DARK, God uses the love of those around us to begin to lead us step by step into the light. It isn’t easy. We may stumble, fall, and lose our way as we struggle to leave DARK behind. But, life’s taught me that God doesn’t leave us to find the way on our own. Once we emerge from the DARK we are then able to look back and see that His Light was guiding us all along! And the amazing thing? His Light will continue to shine, leading us Home where finally, DARK will be no more!