Easter Week Thoughts

Have you ever experienced a flash of light so bright that it left your eyesight darkened to the point of momentary blindness? You may have experienced it when a flashlight shone into your eyes, or the bright flash of a camera taking pictures caused your vision to blacken for a moment.  

When a bright light shines into your eyes it will blur your vision so that all else seems dark. 

I walk early every morning, often just as the sun has risen.  One morning recently, the sun's rays shone so brilliantly as I walked that I had to squint my eyes and I could hardly see.  It was a blessing to enjoy the sunshine but I was rather uncomfortable as the light was so bright that it darkened the rest of the world around me.  Suddenly, I became very aware of the Lord speaking to my heart, and when I got home, I began to write this little piece... 

Darkest Light So Bright

Walking in the sunlight
Brilliant streams of radiance
Warmth wraps my heart
Joy sings in my darkness. 
 
Shining splendor variant
Spliced into timeless flight
Cherished in the heartbeat
My soul lingers in its delight.
 
Spring sunshine in spite
of cool rain at night
I long to stay in this
beaming wand of light so finite. 

Walking onward, forward
Through the dancing sleeves
Light flows now freely
Echos of winter soon to leave.

 Yes, walk on I must
Forever storing its bliss

Deep in my heart's bed

A sweet soul's kiss!

That morning as I walked directly into the bright streams of sunshine, the light was so bright that I couldn't see anything else! Squinting, even though I was wearing sunglasses, still the light so blinded my sight that each step I took was by faith, surely not by sight! 

The light was so bright that in an instant it became a source of darkness - I could not see! Its warmth I felt, the beauty around unseen for my eyes were in darkness.  

Squinting my eyes towards the source, the sun's brilliant beams - the SON's voice spoke gently to my heart - "When you will see me, it is like this light - you cannot see anything but me. I am the LIGHT so bright that all else will become darkness."  

My mind pondered this, and then I asked "How then can I walk Lord?" 

In that small voice of quiet knowing, I heard 

"You must walk by faith, 

you trust my light, 

and walk in your darkness.  

Soon though, my Hand 

will shade the light 

Then you will then see and understand." 

My mind now began to understand indeed! To walk in His light means I will walk my own reality of darkness - for His light blinds all else. I thought of Paul who was stricken because of the light of Christ upon him so that he was blind for three days.  I thought of Daniel who saw a great vision and fell down as dead, because the light was so bright. I thought of Moses who had been in the presence of the Lord, whose countenance was so full of light, that the Israelites could not look upon Him. I thought of Jesus, transfigured on the mountain, so full of light that Peter, James and John could not look upon Him. 

The Light of the world, so bright, that it caused instant darkness. 

And so it is - we long to see and to know the One who is the Light of the Word, but when He shines His light into our hearts, that light so bright often darkens our own reality, and we feel blinded, walking in darkness, and then learning to trust.  

Isn't this where we are today - we are walking in a light so bright, so powerful, so magnificent that we can only see the darkness? Nothing makes sense, other than we know in whom we have believed... and that someday His great Hand will come and shadow the light so we can see once again.  This is a safe place, walking in His light, trusting in the darkness.  His presence comes to us sweet with joy so tender, and with moments of splendor! 

Yes, the hour is dark, and His light is bright... I don't understand.  Yet, as long as we wait in the palm of His great hand, the shadow of His presence will soon make all things clear, and then we will see fully, we will know that the precious glow of light divine has kept us safe from every broken choice, that light so constant that even in our darkness, soon we will be able to see in the shadow, a truth that we will hallow.  

Thank you Lord for breaking the ground fallow

So that my heart will earnestly travel

Trusting you Lord in Your Light

Trusting you Lord, in my night

Wherever your hand leads

My soul follows in delight

Your promise never fails

Your truth, it will prevail

I trust you Lord in my night,

I trust you Lord in Your light. 

Today - because the One who brought us this beautiful light into the world over 2000 years ago, that Light still shines so brightly, and though we often feel we are in the darkness, I pray that the shadow of His hand would dispel the darkness so that we could fully see what He has prepared for us. The world as we look upon it today grows more fearsome by the moment. The tragedies wrap our hearts in grave despair, and we wonder, is there hope anywhere? 

If in this world we had hope only, we would of all men be most miserable! But as we look upon the magnificence of His creation, and we walk in the light of His countenance, and breathe the air that He has created for our bodies to live, we can know that our Creator who designed this universe from its smallest particle to greatest, is not worried, not in the least. 

Perhaps, even His heart beats in anticipation of the day that surely is soon to come, when the hope of all mankind will turn to the only One who can save our world from destroying itself. Our hope is in Jesus. He came as a baby, a lamb, a quiet, humble servant, and overturned death, hell, sin and the grave with His triumphant resurrection from the dead.  We celebrate His victory this week as we remember the events that led to His death on the cross, His burial in a earthen tomb, and His resurrection on that morning. 

The plan of God put into action, is still unfolding today. We must await its careful precise timing... just as we await the birth of a baby chick emerging from its shell, and as we await the unfolding of the rose from its bud. We cannot hurry the process along but must wait in patience. 

And while storms may come unannounced with sudden and bleak outcomes - we must still trust.  We are walking in His light, which causes our eyes to be in darkness.  But soon... triumphantly very soon, we will know Him as He is, and all memory of things endured in this life will pass away.  Yes... soon, I do believe it will be soon! 

As we remember the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord throughout this week, may your heart be blessed to know that we are walking in His light, which in turn seems so dark to us, for a season... but soon the shadow of His hand will arrive, and shade our eyes so that we can fully understand just what He is doing. 

I hope this has encouraged your heart in this Easter season.  I recently put together an Easter Medley video, and I hope that the music encourages your heart! With blessings and love to all of you, I wish you a blessed week of remembering the work Jesus did for us on Calvary and His Resurrection on Easter Sunday.