Glow in the Dark

My friend George Bowers sent me a devotional book titled, The Wonders of Nature. George, a pastor and former public school teacher, has a number of meditations in this 365-day anthology that was recently published and I am enjoying reading it. As with many publications of this genre, some days are better than others, but I’ve been pleased with the consistency of  its overall content .

On Day 43 I read something that caught my attention, a little gem. I can’t attribute this meditation to a particular author because while the book lists the contributors, it does not indicate who wrote each particular day. There is a message in this, the sum is greater than its parts and we are the Body of Christ – seeing Christ in His Body has a special beauty and attraction; we ought to be looking for Him and not for ourselves.

The verse for Day 43 is, “Even in darkness I cannot hide from you. To you the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are the same to you,” (Psalm 139:12 NLT).

The author writes, “When darkness invades your soul and you wonder when you’ll see another scrap of light, rest in knowing that the One who created both day and night knows your name…Condition your eyes to see the candle of God’s presence…God’s Word shines bright when we meditate upon it.” [Italics mine].

I’m reminded of Isaiah 60:1-2, “Arise, shine; for your light has come! And the glory of Yahweh is risen upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people; but Yahweh will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you.”

As Psalm 119 tells us, the Word of God is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. Jesus teaches us that if our eye is single that we will be filled with light. As we meditate on God’s Word we condition our eyes to see God.

When we lived on the Zook Homestead there were no lights between our home and David and Sally’s, so when we visited one another at night we needed a flashlight to lighten our path to and from our homes. We didn’t need a floodlight, we didn’t need a huge lamp, we didn’t need a massive industrial flashlight – a small flashlight was enough to lighten our way, our eyes were conditioned so that a small light was enough, it was sufficient, and it guided us safely home.

When we look at the darkness around us, when we take that darkness into our souls, we lose our sensitivity to light. When the words of man take preeminence over the Word of God our ears become deaf and our spiritual sight becomes faint. When we submit our minds and our wills to the values and priorities of the world our spiritual thinking and understanding becomes dull.

We desperately need the Word of God, we desperately need the presence of God, we desperately need to live in fellowship, communion, koinonia with the Trinity and with one another. The people of our generation need for us to live in the light, the people of our generation need us to, in Christ, be light.

One candle gives light. How much more thousands upon thousands – to the point where they all merge into one Light?

The mediation on Day 43 ends thusly:

“God allows darkness so He can be our light. When we choose to believe [in Him], not only will we see a light in the darkness, we will actually glow in the dark.” [Italics mine].