before the darkness gets too dark...

As long as I can remember I have struggled with nightmares. My fear is actually one reason I trusted Christ at the age of seven. I grew older and the fears grew less. I learned more and more to rest in the promises of God. However, they do return occasionally and last night was one such occasion.

I could not sleep or close my eyes for the onslaught of images from a sickening movie I once watched parts of. The movie was not realistic in any way, but nonetheless the images stuck and grew with my imagination. And they have not left for months. I began praying while lying there, asking God to take the images away, to give my mind peace, to shut it down so I could sleep. I knew I was perfectly safe because He promised to protect me...yet my mind also clung to the horror. I grabbed my IPod and began reading the Psalms, hoping to fill my mind with what is good and true instead of evil and fear. I almost fell asleep. However, whenever I quit reading, my mind returned to what kept me awake.

Finally, I could not bear it anymore, the feeling of drowning in a sea of fear, and I grabbed my flashlight and flipped it on. The room flooded with light, and instantly my mind was more at peace. I got up, turned my little lamp on to save the flashlight battery, and continued to read the Psalms for awhile. It didn't take long for me to fall asleep then, and I slept peacefully the remainder of the night.

I thought about it this morning, wondering why it was so difficult to simply rest in the promises of God...but that I doubt I will ever understand. One thing I do know though, is that darkness can be very very dark. But darkness is not an entity in itself; darkness is merely the absence of light. When the light filled the darkness, there was no more darkness. When the Light appeared, there was no more fear.

Darkness can only be fought with Light. People's minds and hearts are darkened with sin, this world is cursed with sin, and what do we do? We give up the Light as soon as they request!
        "We can talk about God, so long as you leave the Bible out of it."
                "Ok."
No! We fight darkness with light, whether it be physical or spiritual. The very nature of darkness demands its immediate retreat when light appears. And we must not forget that. So I encourage you, ladies and gentlemen, make time to learn about the Light that will never burn out...I assure you, it's worth the effort.