In the Dark

A few days ago I was driving over to Poland to visit friends for the evening.

While it's not unusual for the sky to be turning dark by mid afternoon here, there was an unusual darkness settling over the countryside as I drove.

And the farther I went, the darker it got. Eerily so.

By the time I wound through the little villages and arrived at our friend's house, I could barely see despite dim street lights straining to cut through the thick blackness.

Upon arrival, I commented to them about the extreme darkness. Our friend then shared how he'd also experienced a depth of darkness he'd never seen before while he was out driving. And when Dave arrived a few minutes later in his own car, he too mentioned how strange the drive had been due to the thick, inky nature of the black night.

There must have been some particular atmospheric condition or phenomenon that caused each of us to notice such unusual darkness.

Which then got me to thinking: how awesome it is that morning and light ALWAYS come.

Yet, I have numerous dear ones in my life who are in the midst of "dark nights" right now. And I feel the blackness of it with them.

It is uncomfortable, painful and discouraging to live any period of time in the darkness. I've been there, and probably you have too. It's not fun.

But here's what I know: God is always there and He gets some of His most precious work done when it seems the darkest.

Oh how I wish it weren't so! I wish all of our growth and maturity came in the light. It seems like it would be so much easier on us that way.

But, that's the difficulty of the light. Would we turn to God, THE Light, if we didn't need Him and the light that only He can bring in the darkness? I know my own answer to that question.

I've been pondering this thought the past few days, and praying for those dear ones in my life who are in dark days right now.

Praying they'll run to the Light even though it's dark.

Praying they'll find warmth and comfort in His presence there.

Praying they'll trust Him for however long He has them in the dark.

Praying He will lead them through the darkness in His perfect way and timing.

Praying that when they reach light days once again, as they surely will, they won't forget what God showed them in the dark.