By Gloria Wessner
What happens when you walk into a dark room and turn on the light? You can see! And although we take electricity for granted and just carry on with whatever brought us into the room, we can now see to do that task.
Our lives are like that – we actually live in the dark. And until someone turns on the light, we often don’t even realize that we are in the dark. Life just continues on, and we cope within our circumstances the best we can. If one has a strong personality, they are able to cope longer and better because of that fact. However, eventually something or a number of things will pile up to a point where we don’t cope well which can lead to all sorts of other issues such as depression and/or other mental illnesses, medical conditions, anger at our circumstances and at others, sometimes even thoughts of leaving this planet and how to accomplish that. Therapists, self help books and counsellors are helpful and they assist us through our crisis and help us live better – but is there something more, something that might give it some purpose for going through all my difficulties, and actual change of my inner self so that it really is more than just surviving and a permanent transformation takes place?
The short answer is yes, there is.
‘In the beginning the Word already existed. He was with God, and he was God. He was in the beginning with God. He created everthying there is. Nothing exists that he didn’t make. Life itself was in him, and this life gives light to everyone. The light shines through the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.’(John 1:1-5 NLT)
It involves recognition and surrender – but to someone who is totally there, just for you and lives permanently inside of you to help, love and support you through those very dark times and ordinary days, too. Life still carries on, even those dark times none of us wants to go through (we aren’t sheltered from life), but the difference is what was just mentioned.
‘But although the world was made through him, the world didn’t recognize him when he came. Even in his own land and among his own people, he was accepted. But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn! This is not a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan – this rebirth comes from God.’ (John 1:10-13 NLT)
‘So the Word became human and lived here on earth among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the only Son of the Father.’ (John 1:14 NLT)
So God made a way, through Jesus, to be able to walk through life in light and love, even through all of life’s tragic and difficult moments. Through Jesus’ death and through his rising from the dead, he conquered darkness and death so that we might walk with him through this life in his strength (not mine!), and ultimately live with him in heaven when this life as we know it is done. As it says above, we must believe and accept him in order to have that right to become a child of God. That is the recognition, and the surrender to who he is; which is handing the reins of my life over to him, because I recognize the unfathomable depth of love he’s shown for me and his ability to run or administer my life better than I can. It’s maybe not an easy thing to do, but in the overall picture of life – it makes the most sense and gives me the best and most fulfilling life possible, as well as living eternally with him forever. Not making this decision leads to a life of destruction and ultimate death (hell), which is not what God wants for any of us, at all, which is why he made and carried out this plan with his Son out of his love for us.
‘The theif’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give life in all its fullness.’ (John 10:10 NLT)
If you have any questions about God’s life and light, I would encourage you to write to me at gloriawes@hotmail.com, and I will be glad to get back to you.
‘This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all. So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin (wrongdoings).’ (1 John 1:5-7 NLT, parenthesis mine)