Walking In The Dark With God’s Light
One of the most rewarding and exciting aspects of writing posts for the site is when it is something I know without a doubt the Lord leads me to write, such as today. Over the past few days, the Lord kept bringing to my mind how we’re supposed to be light in a dark world; how others are supposed to see the light of Jesus in us, and how contrary it is to His purpose when we’re not and they don’t, and how it must disappoint Him. So I’ve been thinking of that a lot and what I should write about it. And almost every conversation I’ve had with women over the past week or so has included the importance of BELIEVING God; taking Him at His word and LIVING like we believe Him; demonstrating that we REALLY do trust and rely on Him. And then yesterday after I finished my post, I couldn’t get John 10:25-27 (AMP) out of my mind, because it says Jesus answered them, I have told you so, yet you do not believe Me [you do not trust Me and rely on Me]. The very works that I do by the power of My Father and in My Father’s name bear witness concerning Me [they are My credentials and evidence in support of Me]. But you do not believe and trust and rely on Me because you do not belong to My fold [you are no sheep of Mine]. The sheep that are My own hear and are listening to My voice; and I know them, and they follow Me. So I decided to write my post today about the importance of trusting and relying on the Lord and was surprised when my search for “trust and rely” only brought up two results on www.BibleGateway.com. But when I read the second result, I knew the Lord had something else in mind for today’s post!
The second result led me to Isaiah 50:10-11, which says 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. 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. Wow, that’s a mouthful and it ought to be enough to get the attention of everyone standing for marriage restoration, especially those of us who struggle with letting go and trusting the Lord instead of trying to “fix” or “manage” everything ourselves. These verses make it pretty clear that we have to let God be our light in these dark times, that we have to obey Him and trust Him and rely on Him, because if we do anything else, HIS light doesn’t shine in and around us and we are definitely tormented. Sadly, “torment” well describes what a lot of women standing for marriage restoration experience, just as it did me for many years after my husband left. I now understand and often remind women that living in such turmoil and distress, particularly insisting on tormenting ourselves with thoughts of “What if…”, is evidence that we don’t REALLY believe God and we’re NOT willing to trust Him and rely on Him and WAIT for HIM to show us the way, but I didn’t realize the Bible spelled out the consequences of doubt so clearly. We often talk about doing what it takes to insure the blessings, provisions and protection of God, but we tend to pass over verses like this that warn what the Lord says will happen when we don’t. And there’s NO doubt that anyone standing for marriage restoration, especially in the beginning, can relate to feeling like we’re in the dark with absolutely NO light; with no idea of what to do or where to go and feeling totally lost and alone. And that’s when the Lord says we MUST turn to HIM and trust Him and rely on Him; that HE will give us the light we need to find our/His way. He assures us of that in Proverbs 3:5-6, which says Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. And we certainly don’t want to forget His glorious promise in Psalm 37:5-6, which says Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun. And Proverbs 14:12 makes it very clear why we can’t afford to rely on our own understanding or do things our own way, and further confirms Isaiah 50:10-11, because it says There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death. That’s why we have to rely on the Bible, the word of God, to guide us and provide the light we need in the darkness we find ourselves in right now, because Psalm 119:105 says Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.
When we read Job 29:2-4, it’s so easy to understand and relate to Job’s anguish when he said “How I long for the months gone by, for the days when God watched over me, when his lamp shone upon my head and by his light I walked through darkness! Oh, for the days when I was in my prime, when God’s intimate friendship blessed my house, It’s so natural and normal for all of us to recall better days when we’re going through difficult times, but it’s important to understand that the only way to insure even better days ahead is to TOTALLY trust and rely on the Lord, and to live our lives in obedience to Him so that others will see His light in us. Reading the entire chapter of Job 2, paints a portrait of what our lives are like when we have an intimate relationship with Jesus, especially in terms of the things we do for others in service and obedience to Him, and how the Lord blesses us when we do. And it’s SO important to remember that the only known reason for the devastation and disaster God allowed in Job’s life, who was considered a godly man in every other respect, is found in Job 3:25, which says What I feared has come upon me; what I dreaded has happened to me. So Job’s only failure was not believing God, not trusting and relying on Him completely and allowing fear and dread to dominate his life. But the “rest of the story” is one of the most awesome stories of restoration in the Bible, which would NOT have happened if Job had not been totally faithful and obedient to the Lord NO MATTER WHAT…and because he continued to praise the Lord NO MATTER WHAT! So there’s a lot we can learn from the “rest of the story” and how God worked in his life as the result of his faithfulness.
There’s no doubt that when we find ourselves in difficult times of utter darkness and don’t see a way out, God wants and commands us to trust HIM, and believe and rely on Him and His word alone, including this awesome promise found in Psalm 18:28-36, which says You, O LORD, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light. With your help I can advance against a troop; with my God I can scale a wall. As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him. For who is God besides the LORD? And who is the Rock except our God? It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand on the heights. He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great. You broaden the path beneath me, so that my ankles do not turn. So what better reason is there for trusting and relying on God to turn our time of darkness into light than that! Actually, there IS one, which is found in Matthew 5:15, because it says Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. And we can be certain that when the Lord does turn our time of darkness into light, the rest of the world WILL sit up and take notice, and Jesus WILL be glorified! AMEN!!!