I always felt safer in the dark. As a child, I watched Twilight Zone and the Alfred Hitchcock Hour every Friday night with my friend next door. When it was time to go home, I ran in the dark from his house to mine, took the stairs two by two to my room, jumped into bed, and pulled the covers over my head. I was right back under the covers if I read a scary book or heard a frightening story. With darkness came a sense of safety, as though no one could see or find me as long as I remained invisible.
In the same way, I often sneaked around in the dark when I misbehaved. If my parents couldn’t see me, they couldn’t punish me, or so I thought. In fact, if what I did wasn’t witnessed by anyone, I couldn’t be caught or held accountable. At least, that was my childhood reasoning.
Sometimes, we mature Christians use the same logic I used as a child. When we backslide—cheat a little, tell a white lie, gossip, judge, envy, hate—no harm done if we don’t get caught. But then we come to our senses and realize God sees us. He sees everything, no matter the amount of light in the room.
And by God’s grace, He forgives us. We are the privileged, the chosen, the recipients of God’s favor because we’ve accepted His Son as our Lord and Savior. Jesus Christ is the light of the world, and He calls us to move out of the darkness, and all that goes with it, and into that light we know is the Christian life. Because of God’s goodness, we should shout from the rooftops and sing His praises.
Our challenge is to avoid the darkness and walk in the light of Jesus Christ. Sometimes, we all slip up, disobey God’s teaching, and then regret what we did. But the beauty of our faith is that our gracious God is good. No sin we commit is greater than His grace and ability to forgive us.
Abide in God’s light and live your life in a way that pleases God and as a witness to your faith.
Tim Eichenbrenner is a pediatrician who began writing shortly after retirement. He has two published novels and posts an optimistic blog every other Tuesday. He lives with his wife and their dog in Matthews, North Carolina.