Just as Fall and Winter bring the dropping of leaves, leaving the branches to look disheveled and scrawny, Christians can also enter dark periods of their lives. They can feel confused, weak, depressed, discouraged, unenthusiastic, emotionally scrawny and scraggly. I wouldn’t say it’s normal, but every Christian I know has faced times like this. Fortunately, these days don’t last forever; they are temporary. Just like Spring and Summer, brighter and warmer days return. Once more their branches will be covered by a fresh batch of leaves and their well-being will be restored.
Here is a list of some things that we’d prefer to stay away:
- Unexpected bills or always struggling to make ends meet
- Job – you’ve been fired, laid off, or it has become monotonous
- Leaving for work and returning home in the dark
- Post-partum blues or exhaustion with a new baby
- Wind that blows through a coat and seeps into the bones
- Floods, fires, and tornadoes create a sense of hopelessness
- Schools – worried that your kids or grandkids are exposed to evil and danger
- Artificial lights indoors give you a headache
What should you do when such times hit? If the Spirit exposes a particular sin that is causing the darkness, then confess it to God. “Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love; according to Your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.” (Psalm 51:1–2) If it’s not due to sin, God may be using the situation to loosen your grip on this world.
As I said, I think every Christian faces the dark night of the soul more than once. God wants us to be able to sing, “This world is not my home; I’m only passing through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue.” Even though we know Christ, we need our death grip on this world to be loosened. That’s part of the sanctification process of putting more stock in what we cannot see than what is visible. “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:18)
Periodically, God tests us. He never tempts us, though. “Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him.” (James 1:12)
God tested Israel. “Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep His commands.” (Deuteronomy 8:2)
He will test those who know Jesus. “If any man builds on this foundation [of the Church] using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.” (1 Corinthians 3:12–15)
“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.” (2 Corinthians 5:10) This is not to determine salvation, but for a word from Coach Jesus about how we ran the race He placed us in. Either we will hear “Well done” or “Not your best.” I know which one I want to hear, but there are a lot of distractions the world throws our way. That’s why God gives periodic impromptu tests (and you thought you were done with them when you graduated).
The darkest night of the soul is experienced by those who haven’t accepted Jesus. There is no light at the end of the tunnel, just diesel smoke. They need Jesus to make their night turn into the dawn of a new day.
No Comments
Leave a comment Cancel