Living in a Dark House…

Being a lover of light, I’ve never understood how people could tolerate living in a dark house. They have all the blinds shut and the curtains drawn to keep out the light. Over in the corner is some old, dim lamp with a sad, 40 watt bulb throwing out yellow shadows. There’s usually a bookshelf or two chock full of old books, covered with thick dust from years of neglect. There appears to be some type of carpet, but you can’t really tell what color it is. It seems to lead down dreary hallways to even darker bedrooms. And, the people inside? They’ve got that look on their faces that says nothing goes on in here and it hasn’t for a long time, and they seem okay with it. They have grown fondly attached to their darkness, however dim and blasé, because it is familiar and feels safe. Are you living in that old, dark house?

Nature itself teaches you that the light feels good. There’s nothing like a beautiful, sunny day to lift your spirits. People are happy in the sunshine and warmth and travel many miles to seek it out. But, when the weather is gloomy, people don’t feel so good and sort of hang on until the sun comes back out from behind the clouds. Sunlight even has a positive effect on your body. It’s as if all of creation is beckoning you towards the light. In the light you can see clearly. Colors are more vivid and details are overwhelmingly apparent. In the mornings and evenings, the shifting sun highlights the terrain and casts pleasant shadows on all of the other beautiful things. Without the light we could not live. Without the light, you do not live.

Although you may dispute it, you live your life from within the frameworks of your own mind. Your mind is your house. You have the freedom to decorate it as you see fit. You may fill it with bright, inviting artwork or pictures depicting misery and pain. You can adorn the walls with pleasant, serene colors or with dark, gloomy shades. You can open all the doors and windows to freely admit the light or you can close the blinds and draw the curtains not allowing any light inside. Whatever you choose and however you do it, it is always your house and the choices of decoration and lighting always remain with you. Many people in ignorance, not willful, allow their homes to be decorated for them. Instead of choosing the adornments, they allow something else to choose for them. Once the negative and uninspiring images get inside, they permit them to stick around instead of immediately shooing them back outside. Through disappointments and false representations, they allow their windows to be closed and their doors to be shut. Little by little, their homes gets darker and darker, drearier and drearier. Soon they become accustomed to the dreariness and expect it as just a necessary part of life. The darkness becomes familiar and safe, though it is slowly killing the owner inside.

The simple solution to this complicated dilemma is to turn the light back on. Turn the light on so that you are able to see what has been going on. The trouble with darkness is that once it gains entree it is difficult to extricate yourself from it. Darkness begets more darkness. Darkness is never overcome by exploring and investigating the darkness, it is strengthened. Darkness may only be overcome by light. The light exposes the darkness for what it really is…a lie. Darkness paints a picture of life that is not true. Darkness convinces and persuades you to close your own windows and lock your own doors. It threatens and intimidates with the aim of getting you to retreat inside in the darkness and to remain inside without coming to the light. Scores of people miserably dwell in a dark house of their own choosing, completely unaware of the remedy, found only in the light. It is not that the people no longer want the light. The darkness has discouraged them. The darkness has defeated them. The only way out is to return to the light. The light is always there patiently waiting for people to open their blinds and their curtains and let the light back in. Many a frightful terror is easily dissolved in the light of day.

The light; the true light is found in God’s Word. It is the only light capable of defeating the darkness. You are not going to turn the lights on in your home with your human wisdom or your human logic. It’s your human logic that has been defeated. Your human brain is no match for your spiritual opponent. God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. His Word is light. It is the answer to every question. The more you seek it, the more light you gain access to and the more your path is brightened. Things that have escaped you for years suddenly become apparent. You begin to see things for what they really are and in seeing can make real changes. Soon the role you have been playing in your own defeat enters your awareness and you can finally stop cooperating with evil, leading to your own downfall. Only the light can deliver you from that darkness and if you want it, it is there for you.

Decide today to stop living in that old, tired, dark house. Step out into the sunshine where life is good. Open the windows and doors of your soul and let that light inside. Let it shine inside of you and reveal every dark crevice and thereby set you free. You don’t have to spend another night in futility as the day is at hand! You don’t need a dim lamp to light your path, you have something brighter than the sun.  Choose the light. Look for the light. Desire the light. Your days of living in a dark house are over. Choose the light!

Just some good thoughts…