I woke up a few times and checked the clock. I knew the closer it got
to 5am, the sun would begin to rise and bring me total peace of mind. When
morning finally came, the fear disappeared and everything looked completely
different in the light. My fear seemed so silly in the daylight…but it was so
real in the darkness.
I started to think about how light breaks the power of darkness and how
darkness can hide and distort the truth. The mysterious noises were now exposed
as regular old house noises that wouldn’t give me a second thought during the
day. The shadows of the moving tree branches were fading along with the ones my
mind made up. I could see so clearly with the sun shining through my windows –
banishing fear and the imaginations that accompanied it.
Many bible verses
about light and morning came to mind:
Weeping may last
through the night, but joy comes with the morning. His mercies are new every morning. Psalm
30:5b
The light shines
in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it. John 1:5
The night is far gone; the day is
at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of
light. Romans 4:12
Because of God’s
tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us,
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
and to guide us to the path of peace.” Luke 1:78-9
When walking through a dark time, it’s easy to fear and doubt. It’s
hard to see what’s really going on and it’s even harder not to dwell on the
unknown. In John 14:6, Jesus gives the key to coping with and overcoming our shadow seasons, "I am the way, the truth and the life." He is the way = look to him. He is the truth = rely upon his word. He is the life = allow him to revive my spirit.
Although I know this, I don't always do a good job of practicing it. There are times in life that I "pull the covers over my head or lie paralyzed by fear until morning." However, there are those wonderful times I "rest with the peace of knowing that morning is coming soon." I believe this is where I am really supposed to live – at rest with peace because that equals trust.
Just like morning is my hero to rescue me from the darkness surrounding a bad dream, Jesus is my hero for the dark times I go through. For the darkest of times, this may mean holding on for dear life knowing Jesus is coming to break through like the morning sun to bring me truth and freedom.
