Lamentations 3:6 (NIV): He has made me dwell in darkness like those long dead.
I’ve been in total, complete darkness a few times in my life. Some of those experiences were intentional training. Other times the darkness was unintentional. Each of those times made me feel out of control. I couldn’t see anything. I didn’t know if there was danger around me or not. I was literally in the dark.
Darkness because of having no light, or sight for that matter, is one thing. I don’t really want to volunteer for that type of darkness.
Darkness of the soul is another matter. Jeremiah wrote the book of Lamentations after the people of Israel had been killed or exiled. Only an unfaithful remnant remained. The capitol city of Jerusalem was in ruins. The Temple of God had been destroyed. Jeremiah, the prophet of God, was in a dark place. He was in despair and was depressed.
Many of us, even people who follow Jesus, experience despair and depression.
God has made each of us different. For those who have this challenge, small steps are very significant. C. S. Lewis states that total victory in any area of struggle may not come in this lifetime, but the grace to continually start over and try again is something that the Holy Spirt gives us. Perhaps the struggle is what draws me to an intimacy with God that can be accomplished in no other way.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, darkness, despair, and depression is real. Dealing with it is the struggle of so many that follow You. I pray that You give small victories. I pray that each day that all of us can embrace the Light of the world, Your Son, Jesus.
