A small stream of light in a very dark place brings confidence and hope.  Light pierces through the darkness. 

I remember being in elementary school, I had gone away for summer camp.  During the day we would explore confidently down trails, in the woods without a thought or care in the world…but nighttime..that was a different story.  I remember dreading the moment in the evening when I would have to use the restroom, something in me just wished that I could hold it until morning.  The trails were spooky at night.  There were no street lights.  There were no lamp posts.  There was no light.  I heard sounds in the darkness that I didn’t hear, or perhaps just didn’t notice, in the daytime.  I couldn’t hold it though, I had to go, so I would grab my trusty flashlight and shine it down the dark path.  A small stream of light shined the way to where I needed to go. If I looked to the left it was dark, the right was dark too, and forget looking behind me that perhaps was even scarier.  I focused my eyes on the light in front of me and safely made my way with confidence through the woods to my destination.

Our world is dark.  Our circumstances…sometimes…dark.  The future…unknown.  To the left are our fears.  To the right is the unknown.  Behind us is our past -the things we can’t change. It can be overwhelming.  In the daytime we can feel confident. But in the darkness, when the sun sets and the dark rolls in, when we can’t see to the left, the right, before or behind us that confidence turns to fear. That fear can paralyze us, paralyze our faith and paralyze us from living in the light we were intended to live in.  The darkness attempts to steal the truth, it clouds our vision, empties our faith and stifles us.

I have a friend who in the past few years has been in the middle of very dark circumstances.  Her marriage didn’t turn out the way she thought it would.  Her life story felt so very dark. Her fears were incredibly big, she couldn’t change the past and to look forward, with the dark surrounding her circumstances, the future seemed dark too.

It could have forever paralyzed her, paralyzed her faith and paralyzed her children, their faith, their life story…but it didn’t.
She held the light of truth up to the darkness…
She placed it in front of her…
She placed it in front of her children…
She placed it in front of their story…
She placed it in front of the lies…
She placed it in front of the what if’s….
She placed it in front of the ‘could’ve been’.
She placed it in front of the ‘should’ve been’
She placed it in front of the ‘why me’…
She placed it in front of the unknown…
She placed it in front of the next second…
She placed it in front of the next minute…
She placed it in front of the next hour…
She placed it in front of tomorrow.

She held the truth of God’s word and the mystery of His love and held up against her suffering and the light in front of her illuminated just enough to move a step forward. 

She didn’t look to the left of her fears, she couldn’t there were to many.  She didn’t look to the right of that which overwhelmed her, it would swallow her.  She couldn’t look back to yesterday – it couldn’t be changed.

So she held the light, she gripped it with her very life, she shined it in front of her every step and she walked into it.

Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. Psalm 119:105

The light of God’s love, a stream of light pierces through our darkness, the light of His word, the light of His truth reminds us that He is in front of you and me and my dear friend –  leading, clearing a path, guiding our weary feet through dark places.

Is the darkness overwhelming you?  Does it feel as though it is surrounding you?  Let the flashlight of God’s truth lead you midst the fear, the overwhelming unknown, the what if’s, place the light of His truth in front of you and He will light the path that you may see…

Him.

The Lord will be your everlasting light. Isaiah 60:20