The Clarity of Darkness and the Mission of the Church

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If you were anything like me as a child, I was petrified of the dark. As a child, I remember as a joke; my older cousins would lock me in a dark room, shut the door and prop themselves against it so I couldn’t open it. I would scream uncontrollably, “Let me out!” “Open the door!” as I heard snickering and laughing on the other side. In those moments, all I could think about was how mean they were to be laughing at this overwhelming fear that I couldn’t help; it was innate in me, I couldn’t shake it! More than that, to prompt this fear in me was all the more disturbing. Who would possibly find pleasure in making little children cry? After about 30 seconds, they would release the door, and I would fly through it by the force of gravity, landing as a great tree falling in the open forest. While crying, attempting to catch my breath, and whipping the snot from my nose, I would look intently into their eyes and say, “Why do you guys do that? You know I’m scared of the dark! How can you laugh so uncontrollably at my distress?” While catching their breath from all the laughing, they would respond, “We’re not laughing at your distress; we’re laughing because we locked you in the room, and the light switch was literally in front of your face.”

Beloved, this world is a dark place and is being ruled by the prince of darkness himself; the deceiver (Satan). Many times, we find ourselves overwhelmed by this harsh reality, therefore leading us to desire some place better, a final and eternal home where darkness is swallowed up by light. Although heaven is to be desired and an eternal hope is the grand culmination of our relationship with Jesus this does not mean that darkness is to be avoided. Conversely, if Jesus is the light of the world and his spirit resides in and leads us then how can we shine the light while navigating the darkness of this life?

Today, I would like to argue that God does His best work in the dark. Why? Because the darker the circumstances the brighter the light is and more important it becomes.