Have you lived in fear? Do you know what it is like to lose all hope? Have you experienced the pitch-black darkness, whether from the elements or on the inside? Are you in darkness now? Would you like to get out of the darkness? Have you turned to the One who can bring you out of it?
Being in the dark is not fun. It is downright depressing. We can be filled with fear in the dark. When hope has been lost, we no longer have anywhere to turn. Our darkness may be the physical dark, or it may be a dark place we are in. Either way, fear can set in.
I can distinctly remember being in the pitch-black of night. I was doing field training in Okinawa. We set up a defensive perimeter and were in fighting holes awaiting an attack. We were in the jungle on a hillside. The jungle canopy blocked all light that would have come from the moon and stars. I could not see my own hand held within a few inches of my face. In the quiet, the smallest sound is as if it were the loud pop of a snare drum. Though I knew it was an exercise, I was thinking about what else was in the jungle.
Our fears can spiral out of control, just like it did with the disciples after Jesus had been crucified. They were holed up in a house with doors barred. They were shaking like leaves on a tree. They were afraid they were next. Their fear drove them to think they were more important than they were, and that the Jewish leadership was hunting them down. The Jewish leadership didn’t want them. They had already gotten rid of the ringleader. They figured all His followers would scatter in the wind.
I pray we all release our fears. I pray we don’t allow fear to spiral out of control. I pray each one of us will reach out to Jesus when we find ourselves in a dark place and ask Him to bring us into the light. Let go of your fear. Hold onto your faith in Jesus. Ask Him to bring you into the light.
John 20:19a When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews
Marty Pressey 