Lights out!

A couple weeks ago I was staying at my parents house in upstate New York with the kids while Scott was in California at the Supernatural School of Worship. Where we live in Virginia, there is always a light on, it’s a large suburban area. In contrast, New York can seem really dark at night. One night I was in my parents’ king size bed with Sylvia (5yrs old) and Ezra (3 yrs old). This was our sleeping arrangement while visiting. Around 11pm there was a storm going through the area and the power went out and along with it the night light. Suddenly the room was pitch black. Sylvia, my night owl, was awake and began to freak out. I held onto her and tried to comfort her but it didn’t help. For fifteen minutes she squirmed and fussed irrationally about not being able to see, begging me to turn on the flashlight. She was in a panic. It didn’t matter that I was right there or that we were just going to sleep. She wanted to be able to see!

After Sylvia fell asleep God showed me that I often act like she did when the lights went out. As soon as I can’t see the answers I begin to panic. I feel like I’m no longer on solid ground or that God is not there and certainly not aware of my needs. He reminded me of something I often tell my kids- nothing changes in the dark. When I lose sight of things, whether it’s control of the situation or inability to see the answer, it doesn’t mean the answer is not there or that He is not working for my benefit. When life gets dark He wants to hold us and assure us He’s still there, but like Sylvia did, we often demand more. We want immediate answers. We want instant results. But, God is more concerned with our hearts and where the roots of our faith lie. And it’s good that He is, because life does get dark at times and things won’t always go our way. In good times or bad, He is faithful to make everything work for our benefit.