God Loves You In Your Time of Darkness
God Loves You
You Are Not Without Hope
God Loves You Through Your Time Of Darkness.
“Why?” questions a young man to his Christian friend. The Christian believer really wants to help his buddy who is struggling through the darkest hour of his life. (This is based on a true story, but I will call this struggling youth, ‘Tom,’ and believer, ‘Bill.’) Tom had just lost his mom and dad. His whole life has been taken from him, and yet life moves on, and he cannot stop the world to jump off. Youthful optimism is a thing of the past. The twin towers of darkness and depression have caved in on him, as if it is an avalanche of gloom. Bill is a young Christian but what can he say? Bill does not have an answer. Tom hurts; he no longer goes to church; he no longer prays; he just doesn’t care. Now, Bill is at a loss for words. Surely there is an answer. If he were just closer to God, if he just knew more of the Bible; surely there is something, some ‘magical’ formula to help his friend. All they could do is cry in their hearts together.
It is not unusual to experience a time of darkness. As a matter of fact, it will happen to everyone. You will go through it.
I am at my computer, preparing a Sunday morning sermon. I cease my typing, and feel a flush of emotion. I bow my head and whisper a prayer, “What is it, LORD?” I have been here before, and I know my LORD is preparing to light some sort of fire in my heart. I pause in worship and the Holy Spirit speaks to me (Yes, I believe that God has a way of speaking to us!) The Holy Spirit in His unique way whispers, “Tell the people, ‘God loves them through their time of darkness.”
From Despair To Hope
You are never without hope
We all go through dark times!
Isaiah 50:10 Who among you fears the LORD
and obeys the word of his servant?
Let him who walks in the dark,
who has no light, trust in the name of the LORD and rely on his God.Isaiah 50:11 But now, all you who light fires
and provide yourselves with flaming torches,
go, walk in the light of your fires
and of the torches you have set ablaze.
This is what you shall receive from my hand:
You will lie down in torment. (NIV Bible)
I peer reverently into these words of Isaiah, and realize that when the Scripture refers to fearing God, it is more often describing someone with filial fear or respect to the LORD. We do not serve God out of a slavish fear of judgment and horrible things that might come, but of an internal principle of the heart. I respect and even love the awesome nature of my God. After all, how can I trust Him for my redemption, if he does not have the awe-inspiring and full ability to save me? This kind of fear begets total trust; trust begets faith; faith begets salvation; and salvation begets a personal relationship with my LORD.
In addition, I try to do my best to “obey the words of His Servant.” I like John Gill’s commentary on these words of Isaiah, “this is "Metatron", a name of the Messiah with them … before spoken of as the Lord's servant.”
So, I gaze with an understanding that I (and all Christians) fit this profile. Yet he says that we will go through times of darkness, even a period of living when there seems to be not a spark of light!
We all sometimes feel forsaken
His name is Jesus
"Why,God?" is a question without an answer
It is likely that this story will be you, in some form or another. Will you ask, ‘Why?’
Bill asks, “Why?” Everyone does, including you! Even Jesus on the Cross asks why:
Mark 15:34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? Which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? (KJV Bible)
How is Bill to answer Tom? This is a question without an answer. How can any answer, even if it comes straight from heaven, satisfy during such a time. If Jesus Christ Himself said to Tom, “I wanted them home in paradise with me.” Would that satisfy? If Bill says, “They are in a better place.” Does that gratify Tom? No, a thousand times no – the very nature of a time of darkness is that words are vanity, and explanations are useless. The time of darkness is not lightened by words but by relationship. Warren Wiersbe is correct when he says,
“When you and I hurt deeply, what we really need is not an explanation from God, but a revelation of God. We need to see how great God is; we need to recover our lost perspective on lif e.”
There is always a strong likelihood that you will go through a time of darkness. Whether it be by the death of a loved one, or by financial collapse in this or some other recession, or by prodigal children who have lost their way, or by the myriad of sicknesses that wait in the shadows. Each day is an unplayed, unplanned roulette which even the Christian cannot escape. It is the part, parcel and fabric of life! Darkness will come.
If my rant sounds hopelessly gloomy, then take heart, for you are not alone in your time of dull obscurity. For example, God did not explain to Job why he went through his loss, but Job eventually survived and thrived. Also, look at Habbakuk in the Old Testament. The pastor prophet cried and cried for relief for his Israel. The wait for relief was long – so long that this preacher accused God of not hearing, but God came through in His time, not Habakkuk’s. Jesus said that no man born was greater than John the Baptist, yet John’s faith failed him in prison. Jesus reached out to Him at the end of his darkness. This time of shadow was neither unfruitful nor unending!
Even the great Apostle Paul has his time of darkness. Listen to his words:
2nd Corinthians 4:8 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
Are you perplexed? That is, “Can you not figure why you are in darkness?” You are in good company, and you are not without hope!
Joy Comes In the Morning
Christian Hope
Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. (KJV Bible)
What you endure is neither unfruitful nor unending. God says He will take it, and He will make it work for good. You or I may not see Him working because of the darkness, but He is there! God loves you through your time of darkness.
This is not to say that we are blind, and cannot see anything. On the contrary, your darkness may enable you to see things that otherwise you might never recognize. I may say, “I love the night, because the stars come out at night!” This statement is entirely false. They do not come out at night; they are there ALL the time. Morning, noon and night, God has stars, but I cannot see them in the light. I must view them at night! The darker the night the brighter the stars - My relationship with Jesus Christ shines brightest during my darkest hour; if only I fix my eyes on Him!
I have many friends, but I have trouble in fair times seeing ‘real’ friendship. However, when my time of shadow invades, my true friends glisten like the stars. An artist once paints a highly colorful painting. He makes his friend sit in darkness for 15 minutes before allowing him to view his artistry. It is the only way to see the subtle variances of color, blush and tint. Some forms of beauty can only be discovered in times of darkness, if only I fix my eyes on Jesus.
Psalms 30:5 For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. (KJV Bible)
I may not understand the reason, but I know through my relationship with Jesus it is neither unfruitful nor unending. There is joy at the other side of weeping. Mary Magdalene lives in the shadow of death following the Cross. There is such great darkness in the death of a loved one. It is early in the morning when she comes to the tomb.
Matthew 28:5-7 And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. (6) He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. (7) And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you. (KJV Bible)
For Mary at the shadow of death, there can be no greater light of joy than a message of resurrection. The shadow you endure may last the night, but Jesus is your light at the end of the tunnel.
(John 8:12) Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
(John 9:5) As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.
(John 12:46) I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.
Jesus Knows Your Darkness
Jesus Faces You Through The Darkness
So, to all my hub friends, there is light at the end (and through) your tunnel. His name is Jesus!
The question is, “How do I survive in this burrow of continued night?” “What am I to do, when it is so easy to stumble, and no one to pick me up from my pit?”
(Isaiah 50:10) Let him who walks in the dark,
who has no light,
trust in the name of the LORD
and rely on his God. (NIV Bible)
I must keep on looking and leaning on my LORD! This is the great power of relationship. The worse thing to do is to panic and try to “light my own fire.”
Isaiah 50:11 But now, all you who light fires
and provide yourselves with flaming torches,
go, walk in the light of your fires
and of the torches you have set ablaze.
This is what you shall receive from my hand:
You will lie down in torment. (NIV Bible)
I saiah warns me not to panic, but to trust. I must ever learn to look, to lean, and to leave it in the hands of God.
Abraham could not do this. God promised him a son and a nation like the sands of the sea. He set out on his own with his handmaiden. Ishmael and problems in the Middle East were the results.
Another example is the Apostle Peter. When in the garden of Gethsemane and a time of impending darkness, Simon Peter lit his own fire and cut off the ear of a guard. He later cursed and denied the Savior he loved. How many people go through their time of trial and quit church, cease witnessing, even curse God. Lighting your own fire will not do it.
It takes an effort, but just keep on trusting God, doing right, and leaving your darkness in the hands of God. God loves you through your time of darkness.
The story is told of a man who left the cemetery with his four year old daughter. He has just buried his young wife. How sad and dark as the mother of this precious little child lay cold in her grave. He holds his little daughter by the hand, drives home and fixes supper for her bedtime.
They eat; they attempt a shallow prayer, and prepare for bed. Daddy tucks his little girl into her bed. You could slice the silence of the shadowy scene. The father goes to his room, leaving the daughter whimpering unheard in her bed. A few saddened moments like a lingering dark cloud pass building a dam of tears just waiting to break.
"Daddy - can I come in?" He opens the door - "Daddy - can I sleep in your bed with you."
Near bursting with emotion, he tucks her in and the lights are out. "Daddy, it is so dark in here - it is the darkest night I've ever seen - Daddy, is your face toward me?"
He said - "Yes, baby, My face is toward you."
"Daddy, I guess this means that you can love me right through the darkness." There is only the muffled sound of two pounding hearts fading into silence. She goes to sleep.
No longer could daddy hold back. The reservoir of tears is broken. He slips off the edge of the bed and cries to his heavenly Father - "Father, in heaven, is your face toward me?" God says, "Yes" I love you through the darkness.