What Happens in the Dark?
What Happens in the Dark?
For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” Revelation 7:17
My children love to play hide-and-seek in the dark. When the sun sets and the house lights are turned off they grab their flashlights and run around trying to find the perfect hiding place. The seeker gets his/her flashlight out and shines it in the dark corners. Sometimes they play with dollar store glow sticks. The dark doesn’t seem as dark when pinpricks of light shine through.
When we gaze up at the night sky, depending on where we live, we see the light of the stars even among the black blanket of night. Light isn’t too far away in our life today. But sometimes the darkness seeps deep into our souls. Grief, death, loss, rejection, and disease all seem to suck the light right out of our hearts. Although we are thankful for Easter and the promise of new life, sometimes our hearts are stuck in the dark. There are good things, but the darkness seems heavy and sadness lingers.
God is Working in the Dark
As we think about the resurrection we like to skip over what happened on those quiet days leading to Sunday morning. We celebrate the cross and the power of Jesus’ blood to redeem our souls from sin’s curse. On the cross we see death, but we also know that this death was leading to Sunday where Christ arose from the grave. We know the end of the Easter story, but sometimes we don’t know the end of our own stories and that feels scary. Will this darkness last forever?
Let’s linger in the time between the cross and the empty tomb for a few minutes. Those days were filled with darkness. Death and sadness could probably be felt in the air. The followers of Jesus mourned and grieved. God could have raised Jesus right away, but God waited. Why did God wait? Maybe because things happen when we wait in the darkness. Seeds grow in the dark. Our bodies and minds rest at night while it is dark. Darkness can have a purpose and even though darkness isn’t the final word, a lot can happen in the dark.
When Jesus laid in the tomb everyone was restless. The leaders pondered, the soldiers worried, the women cried, and the disciples ran. I imagine those followers and spectators were restless. But God rested. In the beginning God worked for six days but on the seventh He rested. On the seventh day of the Easter week God rested. Did it mean God wasn’t working? No. It means that sometimes while in the dark, we wait and rest. We trust that our God is still working.
Rest in God in the Dark
You might be in a season of darkness with grief and loss all around, but take heart in resting in God’s work. Psalm 121:3-4 says, “He will not allow your foot to slip; your Protector will not slumber. Indeed, the Protector of Israel does not slumber or sleep. God might be waiting and it might be a time of resting for you, but God is not asleep. God’s hand is still on your life and is working it all out. At the Red Sea the people needed only to be still. God would part the waters.
While sitting in the dark, maybe you need to rest.
Rest in the fact that God never stops working. He is always working for our good. (Romans 8:28-29) Surely the children of Israel felt forgotten by God while they lived 400 years as slaves in Egypt. When Moses bowed at the burning bush, we read these words: “Then the Lord said, “I have observed the misery of my people in Egypt, and have heard them crying out because of their oppressors. I know about their sufferings, and I have come down to rescue them…” (Exodus 3:7-8) We are not forgotten in our suffering and God’s silence doesn’t mean He isn’t listening or isn’t working. Psalm 66:20 says, “Blessed be God! He has not turned away my prayer or turned his faithful love from me.”
God is With Us in the Dark
Maybe the dark is there to remind us that God sits with us in the dark. Micah 7:8 says, “though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light.” God doesn’t always take away the darkness but He promises to be our light in the middle of it. Imagine God crawling down into the pit you find yourself today and bringing a candle. He is right there. He never left. God abandoned Jesus on the cross so that we would never have to be abandoned. This is the comfort in our darkness. God has not left.
In the dark we see that God is good. How could this be good? Well, our tragedy isn’t good. The hard thing we are suffering through isn’t good. The cross in and of itself wasn’t “good.” But what God does in the hard is good. And Who God is while we sit and wait… that is good. In the silence He is still good.
I Didn’t Sign Up for This
We’ve all whispered, “I didn’t sign up for this…” as we watched our world turn upside down. No one signs up to lose their child to death or be left by a parent. No one asks for cancer or surgery. I didn’t sign up for depression after grieving a grandmother nor walking through the brokenness of a difficult adoption. Nor did I sign up to be a missionary for two years to suddenly have the door closed in my face. These disruptions have raised hard, even painful questions—about myself, my plans, my trust in God, and even my very faith. So how could this be good?
But we know, from the Easter story, that God is working even the most horrible thing like the cross is actually the good we need. God is always good. The dark can be a time where we remember that goodness is coming. For when we sit in the dark, we find that God loves us just as we are. We have nothing to offer God while we suffer, but that is the perfect way we can see His heart.
Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, because I am lowly and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. (Matthew 11:28-29) Rest is found when we are weak. God doesn’t run away from us while we are weary and burdened. In fact, Jesus runs towards us. As the people of Israel sought God, God came to them. With His servant Moses, God led His people out of slavery and into the Promised Land, promising His presence.
Tweet ThisThat is good. While we suffer we look toward that time of no suffering. When there is darkness we look forward to that time where there will be no darkness and the Son will shine forever. The darkness allows us to appreciate the light even more. When the game of hide-and-seek is over my children enjoy turning all of the lights back on and laughing at their game played in the darkness. Let us endure this suffering and darkness knowing that the light will be made sweeter when it comes.
Dear Heavenly Father, at Easter we are reminded of the cross that You have provided for us. A way to be freed from sin but also the resurrection reminds us that our Promised Land isn’t here on earth. Jesus’ new life reminds us that even if we suffer our entire lives, eternity is longer. Eternal God, invite us into eternity at the end of our life so we can have all of the goodness. Amen.
Praise Be To God Amen