I John 1:6
“If we say that we have fellowship with him,
and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth.”
For years, I assumed
walking in darkness
only meant sinning.
walking in darkness
only meant sinning.
Ya’ know gross sins of the flesh everyone can see.
Christians going back to sins like a dog going back to its vomit.
This can be a correct definition, but
I also assumed it meant that the person wasn’t saved.
But, in I John 1, the Lord is writing to professing believers.
We understand light clearly.
We KNOW we should be like Him,
the Light of the world.
Darkness can hit closer to home than we imagine.
When we don’t walk in faith,
we are walking in darkness.
When we don’t trust the Lord for the circumstances
He’s allowing in our lives,
we aren’t allowing His light on the path,
when we can’t find joy in Him and Him alone
when troubles abound,
we are walking in darkness.
When we don’t give Him glory in our sufferings,
even though we don’t enjoy the pain and loss,
we are walking in darkness.
We’ve all experienced the confusion and discouragment
when a Christian friend forsakes the Lord.
when a Christian friend forsakes the Lord.
Some turn to the bottle, some leave their spouses.
But walking in the darkness with sins of the flesh
begins
when they walk in darkness with sins of the heart.
If we don’t turn TO the Lord in all our trials,
our indifference could eventually cause us to turn AWAY.
Not all crisises of faith end up in
full-fledged rejection and sins of the flesh,
full-fledged rejection and sins of the flesh,
but those little turnings can still cause spiritual damage.
Not reading, not praying, not calling out to Him
with each sorrow that burdens the heart during the day
can lead us little-by-little into darkness.
can lead us little-by-little into darkness.
If you evaluate some that have turned from the Lord,
they’ve had hard circumstances in their lives.
I met a Christian girl who had a child before marriage.
Her burdened heart revealed her father’s affair
caused her to turn astray.
(He was a pastor.)
(He was a pastor.)
For others, the painful death of a loved one turns them from the Lord.
Still others, physical or financial suffering.
Walking in the Light
is a constant practice,
is a constant practice,
an exercise in changing
dark thoughts and dark circumstances
dark thoughts and dark circumstances
into light with His glorious presence.
*****
I wrote this blog weeks ago,
but never posted it.
Today, the Lord used the words to chastise and encourage me.
I have felt the darkness this past week.
My troubles and sorrows overwhelmed me,
as I temporarily forgot to practice
turning my darkness into His Light. Walking in the light doesn’t mean there aren’t
My troubles and sorrows overwhelmed me,
as I temporarily forgot to practice
turning my darkness into His Light. Walking in the light doesn’t mean there aren’t
dark circumstances in your life,
it means you use the light of Jesus
to illuminate your soul and light your path.
it means you use the light of Jesus
to illuminate your soul and light your path.
Lamps aren’t needed in Heaven,
because He’s the Light.
He’s also the Light of the World.
Nothing else can takes away darkness on earth.
Theologically, we believe He is the Light.
But how do you spiritually keep from
walking in darkness
when sorrows and trials overcome you?
1 John 1:7
But if we walk in the light
as He is in the light,
we have fellowship with one another,
and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son
cleanses us from all sin.
I read and read and read Psalms over and over again. If you turn to the Lord, when there is something so painful that you feel yourself spiraling down into a black whole…if you are seeking God in your trial…you WILL find Him. My valleys have been some of the most precious times with the Lord because I see myself for who I really am…just rags, and He becomes my all in all.
Oh, amen! I identified with this post so much. I pray that God comforts you this week. God is getting us to where he wants us to be. an unknown shore, but His shore. We will learn those lessons He has for us.Love you, Sister!Stacie
"If we don't turn TO the Lord in all our trials,our indifference could eventually cause us to turn AWAY."Thanks for that reminder!
hugs. love you.
The SBL camp song, "In the Arms of Sweet Deliverance" comes to my mind. So thankful for His everlasting love as I walk in and out of darkness. Thanks for this blog, even though it may have been hard to post.
Pray, cry, and write poetry ~ not necessarily in that order. http://pilgrimpurse.blogspot.com/2012/04/poems-for-dark-times.html
Hugs, friend. May you find words if comfort in what you have written today.