The Darkest Night
I am not a fan of darkness, but I do sleep better when there is less light in the room. I prefer the daytime. I love the long summer time days because in winter, it seems like the nights are extra-long. There are some nights that seem very long, the ones where I can’t sleep because of worry or stress. I seem to look at the clock every thirty minutes and then must start my day without a restful night.
There are movies about the dark night – they are often scary. There was also a poem called: The Dark Night of The Soul credited to Saint John of the Cross. I would think that a lot of people have had a few nights that were dark, dreary, lonely and scary. As I read Psalm 13 this morning, it felt like David was struggling with a dark night, but he didn’t give up. Check this out…
1 How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
2 How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
and day after day have sorrow in my heart?
How long will my enemy triumph over me?
3 Look on me and answer, Lord my God.
Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death,
4 and my enemy will say, ‘I have overcome him,’
and my foes will rejoice when I fall.
5 But I trust in your unfailing love;
my heart rejoices in your salvation.
6 I will sing the Lord’s praise,
for he has been good to me. (Psalm 13:1-6 NIV)
The Lord is with me in the darkest night. I can learn a lot about myself in the dark night. My perspective during a dark night needs to recognize the Presence of God with me – even in the dark night. I was reminded of a song by Matt Redman “Your Grace Finds Me”. There’s a line in the song that says: “There in the darkest night of the soul, there in the sweetest song of victory, Your grace finds me.”
I’m so thankful that the Lord is with me even in the darkest night or the hardest day. He has been with me through life-threatening scares, life changing circumstances and I believe He will ALWAYS be with me. I trust Him to walk with me through the most difficult circumstances. I can walk confidently in Him – knowing that I have the Presence and the Counsel of Creator God with me through whatever I face. I trust Him. I’m so thankful for this level of love.
Pressing On!
Dwayne