Did you ever pretend, during a power outage, that you lived in pioneer days? I did when I was little. But, as much fun as that was, at night I still wanted flashlights. It’s no fun to fumble around in the dark. Aren’t you glad Jesus is the light of the world?
We had a fun discussion about light & God’s light shining in darkness. Like back then, we have lots of sayings about light; cartoons even show a light bulb appearing if someone has an idea. (Some ask what appeared before light bulbs, it’s pretty clear it was daybreak. Composer Joseph Haydn wrote a piece called “then comes the dawn,” which may have led to the saying, but the idea of dawn being special could come from even before Christ’s Resurrection.) We have sayings about dark, too; depression is called a dark time, or people are said to have dark thoughts.
When I talk of standing against darkness, of course depression is real. Paul struggled with wanting to go home to Heaven right away once. But, he insisted on living till God called him, since it was important for him to remain so he could minister to others.(Phil. 1:21-26) This is why he summarizes what he plans to say with: “To live is Christ, to die, gain.”(v. 21) The Bible shows here that we can always make a choice. We stand against darkness by choosing to live for Christ. It can mean being there for others, even if it can only be by phone, to help them through; depression can be a big problem, and if you start to feel that way ask for help so others can help you find things to focus on, like writing, art, caring for others, etc.. Maybe you can write fan fiction, post it on fanfiction.net, and include the Gospel somehow, for instance. There are many ways to share with others.
Standing against darkness also means actively avoiding things which bring dark thoughts. Sure, Ohio winters can do that, and we can’t all move to Florida. But, we can stay away from news if it depresses, or focus on God’s goodness and the awesome Heaven which awaits those who trust Him as Saviour. And, rewards from following Jesus all the way, making the most of chances to grow, pray, get alone with God and let Him guide you. Like camp.
Avoiding dark thoughts also means avoiding forces of darkness. Some people have had to shout “Jesus Christ is Lord” to get evil things to flee them. This can come from watching scary movies and having those thoughts in your mind, or even worse, trying to interact with spirits. This is why I’ve said so much abut staying away from evil spirits. It’s good to know you can claim the name or the blood of Jesus over something when you know Him as Saviour, but why add a needless battle to what you already face? The devil can’t posses a believer, but he can oppress easily if allowed. Don’t let him.
Wherever dark, scary thoughts are from, Phil. 4:8 has the answer. Other Bible verses say to meditate on God, His Word, His law, etc., but we see in Phil. 4:8 there are plenty of other good things we can focus on. That's because James 1:17 says "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above and cometh down from the father of lights..." So, as long as thoughts are pure lovely, just, etc., they are good to focus on, because “these things” of Phil. 4:8 come from above. They have to, since God says to think on them.
Still, we need to guard against the devil counterfeiting them. Remember, the devil is a liar from the beginning, like what he told Eve (Gen. 3). He’ll try to make you think sin is lovely, but it’s gross. That’s why the Bible warns against those who call evil good, and good evil. Thinking on things the Bible says are true, good, pure, etc. lets you “keep thy heart with all diligence, for out ot it are the issues of life.”(Prov. 4:23) We can speak the truth in love and explain God's position without being cruel. Remember, our job is not to win arguments, our job is to be the instrument God uses so He can win souls.
So, stand for light and against darkness. Some dark things, we can’t help – but we can choose how we react, if only with God’s help. Others, we can avoid. Some forces of darkness need to be avoided at all costs, of course. Are you standing for light? How are you fighting darkness in your life?
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