Light in the Darkness

Greetings in the Name of our Lord,

“Daddy, turn the light on in the hallway please, I’m scared,” my daughter Kaley said as I tucked her into bed. She was only four at the time and for her, light was her security when she was scared. We spent a few minutes talking about how Mom and Dad were in the next room. I did my best to reassure her four-year-old fears… and I left the light on in the hallway.  

Throughout the scriptures, light is an image for God’s hope and new life. Darkness is the image for hard times, suffering, and evil. In the beginning, when all was dark and void, God says, “Let there be light!” (Genesis 1:3) Light breaks into chaos, and God’s ordered universe is born.

The Revelation to John, the last book in the Bible, ends with an image of light. The Revelation to John was written for the early church who was suffering unspeakable persecution. Jesus says, “It is I, Jesus, who sent my angel to you with this testimony for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” (Revelation 22:16)

All of us carry the scars of the past. These scars are the results of wounds with many names - inflicted by failures, humiliations, or bad conscience. Perhaps, caused at a time when we needed understanding or compassion, and nobody was there to give it. Perhaps it was the result of the unthinking actions of others. Sometimes, the result is of our own doing. For me, I have come to understand these times as “the dark night of the soul.” In these desperate moments, God’s love and assurance have come as a starburst of light.  

Paul says this about our troubles, “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us.” (Romans 8:18) In other words, the light of God is eternal while darkness is only temporary.

Brother Roger, the founder of the Taizé religious movement in France, says in his book His Love is a Fire, “For those who are marked by suffering and by the cross of Christ, the day will come when they will be able to burn with the flame that is fed with all their past life. They will know that in God nothing is lost. Christ does not come to destroy flesh and blood. He does not break what is in us. He has not come to abolish but to fulfill. When darkness gathers, his love is a fire.”

This Sunday, I will be preaching on 1 Samuel 17:48-51 – David’s defeat of Goliath. We will focus on how God prepared David for the day when he would defeat the giant Goliath. David was just the right person, at just the right time, in just the right place to defeat the darkness of fear with the light of God’s presence. 

This week, the Horizon Texas Annual Conference met for three days doing the work of the conference and worshipping. We ordained a host of young people for the ministry of the Church. It was amazing! These young people inspired me with their passion and enthusiasm. Bishop Saenz, our presiding bishop, kept pushing us asking the question, “Is God tapping you on the shoulder, calling you to do a work for God?” 

As I close, let me ask the same question… “Is God tapping you on the shoulder, calling you to do a work for God?” – to bring light into the darkness of this world as we join together to defeat the giants of darkness. 

See you this weekend for Trinkets to Treasures and then Sunday for worship!

Pastor John Allen