As the lights went off
early this morning, Danny had already left for work at 3:30. I found myself in
the dark alone.
As I pondered whether to be afraid or find a light, I
remembered a recent visit with our daughters and their families. They shared
tales about being afraid of the dark in their rooms. One told of the pile of
clothes in a chair that looked like a person sitting there. Overnight they kept
their eye on the man hoping he didn’t get up and get them. But as morning came,
the true identity revealed just clothes. I too remembered a “tiger” in my room
that was a pile of blankets upon the light of day. I was amazed that this seems
to be something all kids experience. The only difference in us was that I would
nearly suffocate, thinking if my head was covered the fictitious monster
couldn’t see me and thus couldn't get me!
There are many things
that appear bigger than life in the night watches. Faced with a desperate
situation, we can only see what we’re focused on. We can’t see anything well.
We get worried and our imaginations run wild. We may even get to feeling that
we are done for, that all our hope is gone. We cover our heads, we bury our
minds, we grasp for comfort and all to no avail. The problem is still in the
room with us, sitting in a chair. Staring us down, the problem seems to loom
larger than life. We concentrate more and more on the problem and it just gets
bigger and bigger.
But let the Son come
into the room and we find sweet relief. That problem, though we may still have
it, is not nearly as big as we thought, nor as ferocious. It is just a pile of
stuff compared to the Lord. We have Jesus and He lights the room with His
presence and lightens our hearts with His love. We are no longer fearful
because He is with us. We don’t have to fret or fume or worry or concentrate on
the problem. We don’t have to cover our head or bury our life for He has come
into the room to give us sweet relief. Not only will He comfort us, He promises
to help us with the problem. He knows the situation even better than we do for
He sees the end of the night. We are stuck in the situation, but He is here to
release us from the blame, the fear and the worry.
Oh beloved, you don’t
have to hide from the situation and hope frantically that it will not overtake
you! Open up God’s Word and read. He is your Answer - to the problem, to your
worry, to the outcome and to the plan for good and not evil. As you turn your
eyes on Jesus, the things that are trying to suffocate you will lose their
ferocity because you will be looking at the Savior rather than the problem. He
promises to give you sweet rest no matter what’s going on around you. God will
either remove the problem altogether or He will give you instructions on wisdom
to deal with it and peace to know that His ways are best. The darkness will not
overtake you for your Lord is the Light of the World and the Light in your
present dark situation.
Rejoice that God loves
you and He’s for you and that’s all you need to see your way through to morning
as you rest in the light of His Word.
Psalm 91:1-2 He who dwells in the shelter of the
Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, “My
refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust!”
Psalm 139:10-12 Even there Your hand will lead me,
and Your right hand will lay hold of me. If I say, “Surely the darkness will
overwhelm me, and the light around me will be night,” Even the darkness is not
dark to You, and the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are
alike to You.
Psalm 121:2 My help comes from the LORD, Who made
heaven and earth.
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