Articles
Led Out of Darkness
Led Out of Darkness
Michael Hite
One year, while my wife and I were on vacation, we visited a popular series of caves in South Dakota. We were fascinated by the structures and beauty of the formation that time and water had made so deep underground. As we went deeper and deeper underground in one of the caves, our guide explained that those who had originally discovered the caves had explored them equipped only with balls of string and candles to light their way. At one point along the way our guide stopped the group, and they turned out all the lights. "Imagine," she said, "If your candle went out down here with no way to relight it." That was a sobering thought. The darkness was intense to say the least. Most of the time in the dark your eyes will adjust and although it may be very dim you can see some things. There was no adjusting to this darkness. It almost felt like it was pressing on your chest. You could feel it. You literally could not see your hand in front of your face and no amount of time spent in that darkness would allow you to adjust. Down here with no light and no way to relight your candle it would be impossible to find your way out. After a few long minutes in that total darkness, the guide turned on one small flashlight and suddenly everything came back into view. It was amazing how one small light could illuminate such a large space. It was such a relief to be able to see the path clearly again. Of course, then they turned all the lights back on and we could navigate easily once again, and we were led out safely.
Our spiritual lives can be a lot like that cave experience. Peter reminds us that "we have been called out of darkness" (1 Peter 2:9). John warns that we can find ourselves "walking in darkness" (1 John 1:6). But unlike that cave, unfortunately our eyes adjust to our spiritual darkness. It is not until we seek to come to know God and His Son that we realize the darkness we are walking in. God is Light (1 John 1:5) and without him the darkness can and often does overtake us. Paul encouraged the Roman Christians to "lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light" (Romans 13:12). Praise God that He has provided us with a candle that will never go out. We have a flashlight whose batteries will never die. God's word is always there to light our path. "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path" (Psalm 119:105).
But we must lay aside the deeds of darkness and seek the light of God's words in our lives. We must let God light our way. Faith is not simply a consent to God's existence or that He is light. Faith is a trust in His guidance and direction for our lives - it means using that light to guide our steps, to help us make decisions and set our directions. It doesn't matter how dark our lives have become; God's word is always ready to light path. We need to clutch that lamp tightly in our hands and never let it go out. If we do, it will dispel the darkness and light our way safely home to Him.
