Beauty in the Darkness
/
A few months ago, we took a spontaneous trip to the beach for my birthday. Our family has the rare talent of being able to turn a simple 5 hour trip into a 9 hour trip with all the potty breaks and stops we take. That, being coupled with the fact that I'm not always ready to leave for trips quite on time, by the time we finally arrived it was already dark. I, being the Floridian beach-loving girl that I am, was so excited to get there, my first visit to the east coast. I was probably even more excited than our kids! From our hotel balcony, I could hear the ocean waves, I could smell the salty air, but of course I couldn't see it because it was already too dark. I just couldn't wait until morning when my eyes could finally behold the beauty my head had already imagined. We went to bed with the balcony door open as we listened to the peaceful sound of the ocean waves.
That night, as we were savoring the smells and sounds of the ocean, a lightening storm began, giving me a glimpse of the beauty lying underneath the cover of darkness. Every few minutes, the lightening would strike, illuminating the beauty of the colorful sky, the sand, the shoreline. Even though each strike would last only a few seconds, it was just enough for me to be able to see the beauty my eyes would witness the next morning when the darkness was lifted and the sun rose again.
As I lay there, I couldn't help but compare the darkness of that night to the trials in our lives as humans and the lightening strikes as glimpses of God's grace and faithfulness in the middle of those trials. Sometimes we get so focused on the darkness that our trials bring. Sure, life brings us some very difficult moments. Some scary moments. That death of a loved one, that diagnosis, that job loss, that divorce. The scary moments in our lives can be endless. Sometimes the fear of the unknown can be paralyzing. We know the sun will rise again and light will shine on what was once dark, but sometimes that head knowledge doesn't translate. Just like I could hear the waves and smell the salty air, I just couldn't see the beauty, we too can be assured that God's promises are there and are true in the middle of our trials even when we can't see them. God sends little glimpses of His glory and His faithfulness right in the middle of our dark night. I challenge you to look for the "lightening" that illuminates the darkness you're facing. Even when the darkness of night doesn't go away when we think it should, we can be encouraged and have faith that God's promises remain true.
God is always good. In the good times, He is good. In the bad times, He is STILL good. Look for the blessings He sends along the way. Look for His everlasting promises. Even when you can't see the light in your darkness, you can rest in the TRUTH that you already know. If you belong to Him, God will never leave you or forsake you. He loves you. He knows your innermost thoughts and fears. He hurts when you hurt. The sun WILL rise again and the light WILL shine. And oh the beauty you will FINALLY get to behold that once was covered by complete darkness.
-Hope
