How the words of Psalm 23 echoed in their hearts! "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death" (Psalm 23:4 KJV). How dark that valley seemed as their tear-blurred eyes stared at the two caskets!
It had been summer vacation. A family camping trip. The two girls laughing down by the stream bed. Suddenly a violent rumbling and rushing. A flash flood. Then silence. No more laughter. Dead silence. What darkness for that mom and dad, losing their two children!
Darkness comes in many forms: death, disease, disability, depression, disappointment, doubt. In addition, loss of friends, financial woes, missed opportunities, unrewarded effort, the shallowness of life can leave us wallowing in darkness, not knowing which way to turn. Who of us hasn’t experienced feelings of hopelessness, futility, and rejection? And what about the darkness when others attack the very source of our light, rejecting our Savior and ridiculing our efforts to follow him, or when our own weakness of faith makes the light seem so dim?
What darkness have you stumbled through? What darkness might unexpectedly flood over you in the days ahead? Maybe you came here this morning longing for some light in the darkness.
Take heart, dear friend, for the Savior’s words shine out to you. He calls out into your darkness promising, "I have endured all for you." Let’s see how true those words are and how they shatter into our darkness.