My wife and I once found ourselves facing the darkness—a situation where we would have welcomed a lamp for our feet.
When we arrived late for a performance of the Nutcracker ballet, a young usher dutifully led us upstairs to our seats in the gallery. But instead of staying with us and shining his flashlight on the steps down to our row, our trusty leader kept going, leaving us in the dark. In the inky blackness, we grasped the aisle’s center railing and eased our feet forward on the carpet to the edge of each step. Several slide-steps later, we caught up with him and found our seats.
Psalm 119 has 176 verses. If we surveyed people’s top ten favorites, today’s text would sail through the cut easily. In a few simple words, the writer announces a profound truth that has echoed across the ages and around the globe: God and His Word can be trusted, even in the darkest hour.
Life is a journey where God notes the short view (my feet) and the long view (my path). Each of us is on a journey, and the Lord takes a personal interest in what is happening to us. Our world is a dark place, spiritually speaking. But we can go into the darkness, knowing the light of God’s Word will not fail us. As we cling to God, He will guide us around every twist and turn and through every rough patch.
With such a magnificent and powerful resource, how can we not be prepared to face the darkness? Sadly, many have turned away from God’s light, preferring the artificial glimmer of worldly wisdom.
The psalmist gives the key to success a few verses farther down: “My heart is set on keeping your decrees to the very end” (119:112). Our lives have no room for complacency. The better we understand sin and Satan’s darkness, the more fervently we cling to God’s light.
How can you prepare to face the darkness?
(photo courtesy of pixabay.com.)
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A native of South Africa, Philip Siebbeles lives in Harrells, North Carolina. An ordained elder in the Wesleyan church, he currently serves as interim pastor at Rockfish Presbyterian Church in Wallace, NC. He recently retired from teaching religion courses at James Sprunt Community College. His wife is a retired psychiatric nurse, so he claims to be in good hands. He loves to walk their lab, Potter, in the garden, watch PBS with Ellen, and create Bible study guides to help people analyze the text for themselves.