Why Does It Seem So Dark Sometimes?

Several years ago, I was asked to speak at a women’s retreat. Their theme was “How to Keep Growing When the Son Don’t Shine.” I found myself struggling with this topic for a while until it struck me – the sun is always shining! Whether we see it or not,  the sun never ceases to shine.

As for the Son, He never ceases to shine either. He IS the light of the world – not He was nor He will be – but He IS the light of the world. Always IS. Present tense. Yesterday, today and forever, He shines!!

So then, why does it seem so dark sometimes?

1. It’s Nighttime. 

At night, the earth is turned away from the sun. And when it seems dark spiritually, perhaps it is because we have turned away from Him. Have we stopped spending time with Him? Are we standing in or relying on our own strength?

The answer is simple: turn our focus back to Him, spend time in the Word and prayer, enjoy the fellowship of believers. I know I said the answer is simple, but that’s just simple for me to say. It is not always easy to do. Just take one tiny baby step in the right direction, and God will meet with us. He may ask us to keep taking those steps, but He gives us the strength to do it as we lean on Him.

“For God, who said, ‘Let there be light in the darkness,’ has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.” (2 Cor. 4:6-7)

2. It’s Blocked.

Other times, it seems dark because something is blocking the sun, like an eclipse or dark clouds. There are things that seem huge and overwhelming, but the fact is – nothing is bigger than the sun! It’s just that these issues are closer.

When is your thumb bigger than the sun? When it’s right in front of your eye! These obstacles that capture our attention block our view of the Son. But if we can step back and put things in the proper perspective, they shrink in comparison. We are engaged in spiritual warfare, and an effective enemy tactic is to distract our focus. He uses busyness, family or friend problems, work concerns, over-sensitivity, self-consciousness, financial worries, etc. to attract our attention. When we concentrate on eternal matters, the things of this world dim in comparison.

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