Friday, March 25, 2011

Away from the abscene of light

What is it about the dark that scares me?
It is not the darkness itself, but rather what is in the dark...or rather what is not in the dark.

Dark is the absence of light.

I need light, I desire light.

Sunlight is what allows plants to grow, without it they die. Light allows us to see colors. Light allows us to see. Light shows us the way out of the dark.

I need light to be in me. I do not merely mean physical light. But light that comes from the ultimate source, not the sun, but the Son.
Jesus calls Himself the light. He directs our paths to those of righteousness.
Christ has drawn us our of the darkness to Himself. In Him is salvation, the forgiveness of sins.
We are called to be lights of the world. To shine bright for God's glory. To shine lights into the darkness of others. We can't do that while remaining in the dark.
We often like to stay in the dark, sitting there watching so bright flashy distraction, which we can see better in the dark. It looks appealing when we are in the dark, no one can see us. They don't know what we are doing while we are all in the dark. We would rather be distracted by the "flashy" things are this world that will pass away, than step into the everlasting light. The bright glorious light that outshines any form of amusement we try to distract ourselves with.
When we step into the light we can see what was happening in the dark, which will make us desire to stay in the light. I am more easily tempted to do wrong in the dark, actual dark, than I am in the light. The dark hides the ugly for a time, but it is still there. The light displays the ugly for what it is, so that we can change it, give it to God, be renewed, and see the beauty around us. In the dark you can't see. You are blind, except for the distractions satan wants you to see. In the light, by God's grace, you can see. Your eyes are open, not only to the destruction, hurt, ugliness that takes place in the dark, but to the true beauty of what God has made, has in store for us, to renewal, glory, wonder. Everything will be brought to light in the end. The longer we stay in the dark, the longer we ignore the light, the harsher it will be when we are brought out.
As God is graciously pulling me out of the dark, I don't want to go back. He reaches for us in the dark, pulls us out. Being in the light is hard, for a time. It hurts my eyes to adjust. To really see that what I was doing in the dark was not only wrong, but excruciatingly painful to my Lord, to the point of causing His death.
In dark is death. In light is light.
Christ is light.

Dear Lord, help me to live and walk in the light. Help me to stay way from the dark, from death, destruction, sin. I need Your help to stay in the light, You are the light. Help me stay near to You.
With love, to Love. Amen



Psalm 36:9
"For with You is the fountain of life: In Your light we see light."

Proverbs 4:18
"But the path of the just is like the shinning sun, that shines ever brighter unto the perfect day."

Isaiah 9:2
"The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned"

Matthew 5:14-15
"You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 10:27
"Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light;"

Mark 4:22
"For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light"

John 1:4-5
"In him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it."

John 3:19-21
"And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world and men loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God"

John 8:12
"I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life."

John 9:39, 41
"For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind... If you were blind you would have no sin; but now you say 'we see'. Therefore your sin remains"

John 12: 35-36
"Then Jesus said to them 'A little while longer the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light"

John 14:6
"Jesus said to him 'I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."

John 14:15
"The Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither see Him nor knows Him; but you know Him for He dwells with you and will be in you."


Romans 1:20-21
"For since the beginning of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the thing that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as Gog, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened."

Ephesians 5:8-14
" For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret. But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light.Therefore He says “Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light.”


Colossians 1:13-14
"He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins"

Hebrews 4:13
"An there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account"

1 John 1:5
"This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light an din Him is no darkness at all."



Interesting fact I learned: our eyes naturally respond faster when moving from darkness into the light than the other way around.
Hmmm.
"The eye takes approximately 20–30 minutes to fully adapt from bright sunlight to complete darkness and become ten thousand to one million times more sensitive than at full daylight. In this process, the eye's perception of color changes as well. However, it takes approximately five minutes for the eye to adapt to bright sunlight from darkness. This is due to cones obtaining more sensitivity when first entering the dark for the first five minutes but the rods take over after five or more minutes"