For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime!
Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning
(Psalm 30:5, NLT)
Until we experience the promise of a home where there is no more night, we all will encounter seasons that feel as though dawn is forever an hour away. It’s not a matter of if , but when the shadows grow long and dark. And no one, regardless of their faith or pedigree, is immune from the seasons when darkness comes.
When darkness comes, “tired” takes on a whole new meaning. Every fiber of your being aches for rest, but rest remains taunting and elusive. Even the simplest of routine tasks feels like labor to exhaustion when darkness comes.
When darkness comes, the world gets bigger, even as it remains unseen. As it closes in around you, your soul feels as if it is shrinking. The world keeps turning, yet your heart’s left yearning and feeling all the more invisible when darkness comes.
When darkness comes, tears lose their manners and interrupt you without first asking if this is a convenient time. Alone or with others, busy or bored, for any reason or no reason it just makes sense to cry. And like the psalmists of old, sometimes tears are your most faithful companion when darkness comes.
When darkness comes the road gets rough because you can’t see what’s in front of you. You lose your discernment and depth perception and the journey slows to a crawl or crashes in a fall. Things that are allies and assets in the daylight become stumbling blocks and snares in the night when darkness comes.
When darkness comes, friends disappear. They may be standing next to you and remain as steadfast as they’ve always been, but you can’t see them or dare not trust them because you’re blind to their intentions or actions. There is no feeling of isolation or abandonment like the loneliness you feel when darkness comes.
When darkness comes, poverty is no respecter of persons. You can’t see your assets and treasures, your strengths and resources, even if you have them all in abundance. The rich and the poor, the hungry and the full, all stand at the beggar’s table when darkness comes.
When darkness comes, nothing feels like home. Living in Cain’s shadow, you feel like a fugitive and vagabond, even within the friendly confines of your house or neighborhood. Yearning for what you won’t see this side of heaven, you feel all the more homeless when darkness comes.
When darkness comes, pain becomes your relentless partner. It follows you, leads you, talks to you, rests with you, works with you, plays with you, and never takes a break. Physical or emotional, mental or spiritual – the hurts just keep on calling when darkness comes.
But when darkness comes, the story doesn’t end with you frozen in fear or grasping for hope. If it’s true that the Most High has delivered you from the domain of darkness, it’s also true that He has entered your darkness, even if the whole world was beating a hasty exit. And if it’s true that He’s the Lord of day, then He must rule the night. Your night.
When darkness comes, He stores every tear in a bottle and keeps an account of all your sorrows. And until that day He wipes every tear you’ve cried, He will hold you and love you while you cry them. Your tears are no match for His capacity to dry them when darkness comes.
When darkness comes, He stands by your side as He stands on your side. He defends you as your advocate, wars for you as your protector, and intercedes for you as your Great High Priest. And if He is for you, who can be against you when darkness comes?
When darkness comes, He comforts your heart with courage and peace. He needs no calming of the storm to still your heart; He needs no favorable wind to set your sails. His peace passes all understanding and his strength renews like the eagle’s – even when darkness comes.
When darkness comes, He does for you what you can’t do for yourself. Your blindness is no match for His sight; your weakness is nothing next to His strength. No matter how lost or broken you feel, He becomes your wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption when darkness comes.
When darkness comes, He is your friend who sticks closer than a brother. He sees in you what you can’t see in yourself, likes you when you feel unlikeable, and calls out laughter in you when you least expect it. He loves at all times, but like a brother-of-the-heart, He was born for the day when darkness comes.
When darkness comes, He lays down His life for His friends. Out of a grace-filled heart, He serves you at your point of need, even when you don’t always recognize that it’s He who is doing the serving. He gives and gives and gives again – just as He did on that day He declared once and for all His love for the world – the day when darkness came.