A Light in the Darkness

I don’t know if any of y’all are Lord of the Rings fans, but I grew up watching the Lord of the Ring movies, and more recently The Hobbit series.  And as I was watching The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug in theaters, one scene really struck me and has stuck with me ever since.  In the movie, Gandalf is entering an “abandoned” castle called Dol Guldur, which he knows is “undoubtedly a trap.”  During the inevitable ensuing fight, Gandalf is surrounded by a huge cloud of black smoke, held at bay only by a sphere of his own white light.  As it comes at him, a voice comes out of the darkness to threaten that, “there is no light…that can defeat darkness.”

Now, as many of you may know, darkness and light are very important concepts in Christianity, and are often used to symbolize sin/evil and God, respectively.  Light and dark are also commonly used in movies, as seen here, to symbolize good vs. evil.  So that was really not new.  But what struck me while I was watching this scene was that when Gandalf first created his sphere of light, the light and darkness were approximately even in how much they drew your eye.  But as the darkness seemed to enclose around the light, forcing the sphere to become smaller, the sphere inexplicably seemed to be brighter by comparison.  The darker the scene became, the brighter the light shone.  Throughout this experience, I was reminded of our fight against brokenness and sin in our world today and I drew two conclusions from this.

First, there is so much darkness and evil out there that it often seems our light is small indeed.  But even in the darkest places, the light of Christ stands out even more strongly in the dark.  So when you are discouraged by the darkness around you, remember that “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness does not overcome it” (John 1:5).

Second, in light of this knowledge, I would encourage careful consideration of where we choose to share Christ’s light.  We are called to be good stewards of the gifts God has given us.  Part of being good stewards is carefully considering where and how to use those gifts.  Now, let me be clear.  Anywhere that we share Christ’s light through our actions is going to be good and will have a positive effect.  But if you look at the room around you, (go ahead, look right now) there will be places that are darker than others.  The places that are not dark do not necessarily need light to illuminate them, while the shadowy places need the light more in order for what is in those places to be visible.  So it is with our world.  There are many places where Christ’s light is already known and is brightly burning.  That is a fantastic thing!  Though far from perfect, in America we are often in places where light is more abundantly present.  But I would ask that you prayerfully consider if God is calling you to places of greater darkness, where light is more desperately needed.  It is sometimes frightening to consider purposefully stepping into the darkness, but remember how a single candle can light up a dark space.  And also remember that God is with us no matter where we go.  Psalm 23:4 says, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.”  No matter where we go, God is always with us, and “he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4)!

So as we look at the world around us, it is tempting to see only darkness and struggle.  But be encouraged that the darker the atmosphere around us is, the brighter Christ’s light will shine.  And it will continue to shine in the darkness until Christ comes back again and we will all get to bask in that glorious light.

What to do when you don't know what to do: A social (in)justice issue

Racism, sexism, terrorism, and so many more wrongs.  Our world today is clearly broken.  There is so much pain, so much injustice, so much inequality in our societies.  And yet these issues are not always as black and white as I once believed them to be.  For example, does kneeling during the national anthem at a sporting event mean protesting against racism, or insulting veterans?  What do you do when even veterans are divided about whether kneeling is an insult to the flag or not?  What do you do when you want to support the right causes in a socially conscious way, but you don’t even know what that really means anymore?

Sometimes I feel so overwhelmed by the weight of injustice in this world.  I feel as though I am being crushed underneath it.  I am lost and confused and angry at the hurts of this world.  “It is not fair,” I cry out to Jesus, “What do I do?”  And, as always, He answers me.  I cannot fix this world.  It has been broken by the sins of humanity and a much greater power than I will be the one to make all things new again.  But in dealing with social justice issues, God has clearly said what is expected of me and of you.  So here are three things to do when you don’t know what’s right or wrong anymore:

1.  Act justly – When you are convinced of what the right and wrong things to do are, choose to do the right thing consistently.  Be socially conscious.  Be aware of the consequences of the choices you make and choose to live in a fair and just manner as far as it is possible, even when that means making decisions that may not benefit you. sad
2. Love mercy – Be merciful to yourself and to others.  Social justice issues are complex and they deal with real people’s lives.  It is easy to forget sometimes that the people involved in these issues are not just comments on a webpage, but real people with real lives dealing with the real consequences of these issues.   Mercy can be defined as “compassion shown towards someone whom it is within one’s power to harm” (dictionary.com).  Particularly for those of us who have privilege in this world, it is vital to recognize that we have the power to help or to harm those without privilege.  But God clearly calls us not only to be merciful, but to love mercy.  Embrace it with all of your being.  Choose compassion daily.  God has shown so much mercy to us, and now it is our turn to be merciful to others. superior living justly loving mercy walking humbly
3. Walk humbly with your God – Understand that you are not God and you are not omniscient.  You and I do not know everything and cannot know all the answers.  Give yourself grace in that and humbly ask God for guidance.  As you grow closer to God, your perspectives on certain social justice issues may change.  Humbly accept when you have acted wrongly, and strive to learn from those experiences and to grow in the future.

With these tenants in mind, we are at least able to have a framework to follow when dealing with social injustices.  Don’t get me wrong, there are still many issues I struggle with knowing the right thing to do.  But I always have the option to listen and to love.  I can choose to listen to those involved, even if what they say is not what I want to hear.  And I can choose to love unconditionally.  I can choose compassion.  I can choose not to give up, not to be cynical, to continue fighting and muddling my way through this life the best that I can.  I can continue to follow the words of Micah 6:8* as hard as it may be, because the alternative of being apathetic is unacceptable to me.  I cannot fix the world, but with God’s strength I can be part of making it a better place.  Will you join me?

*Micah 6:8 “He has told you, O man what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God.”

What is your relationship with God worth to you?

As I was reading through the book of James for a study I’m in right now, I misread James 4:4, which says, “You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God?”  But as I read this quickly, I thought it said, 

“Do you not know that friendship with God is worth enmity with the world?”

Wow.  While the true passage is absolutely correct, and makes significantly more sense in the context of the chapter than what I read, that rhetorical question God put into my head stopped me dead in my tracks.  I have been a Christian for more than fifteen years, and something I still struggle with daily is seeking approval from those around me, those I can physically see and hear and interact with, rather than God.  But I say (and believe) that my relationship with God is the most important thing in my life.  And through this simple misreading of scripture God again forced me to recall the fact that my relationship with him is worth more than the approval of the world.  I can practically hear His voice breaking as he asks me, “Don’t you know?  How do you not understand?  I am worth more than anything the world can offer you.  I want to give you so much more.”

To be a friend of God’s is worth (and will cost) the enmity of the world.  Yes, it is part of my duty as a Christian to, “as much as it depends on [me], live peaceably with all” (Romans 12:18).  But this incredible, precious, amazing opportunity I have been granted?  The chance to have an intimate relationship with the creator of the universe who gave up his own life for mine?  That is worth far more than the approval of those around me.  It is worth more than the temporary satisfaction I receive when I complain at work and my coworkers agree with me.  It is worth more than the misplaced pride I feel when I listen to gossip about how someone did not do their job well and I think, “I would never do that.”  It is worth more than giving into the temptation to be cynical, or abrasive, or argumentative about the myriad of issues facing our broken world today.  It is worth more than all the worst and all the best that this world can offer me.  It is worth more, because He is worth more.  I do not deserve this God of mine, this friend of mine, but I am so grateful for Him.  To me, His friendship is worth enmity with the world.

What is it worth to you?