Echoes From the Campfire

[Don Adkisson]

       “With light and darkness men change, women change, and life changes.”
                    --James Oliver Curwood (The Valley of Silent Men a Story of the Three River Country)

       "For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ."
                    --2 Corinthians 4:6 (NKJV)
--------------------------
Darkness, in the middle of lights and celebration?  Absolutely!  The lights, the fanfare, the bells, chimes, and celebrations are often indications of darkness.  Men and women run to them to escape their dark souls, to rationalize the sin in their hearts.  Many will not even acknowledge that they are sinners.  Darkness!  St. John of the Cross wrote, "For the sensual part of a man has no capacity for that which is pure spirit, and thus, when it is the spirit that receives the pleasure, the flesh is left without savor and is too weak to perform any action."  Man does not want the true light to shine on his spirit for he loves to live in darkness, in his evil thoughts, that is one reason he fights to the conviction that comes to him.  Therefore, he often seeks the pseudo-light thinking that it will ease his conscience.
     St. John of the Cross continues with the thought that man's palate was accustomed to the tastes and flavors of Egypt.  He enjoys it, he savors it, and when he is removed he will complain that he wants and prefers the food of Egypt; he complains about the food of heaven.  Thus when the light shines he shuts his spiritual mind against what it represents.  Oh that we would see the true light!  Let the lights on your tree remind you of the One who sent the Light into the dark world; to remind you of the Light that flooded the darkness of your heart and spirit.  
     Isaiah reminds us, "There will be no more gloom for her who was in anguish." (9:1, NASB)  The NLT translates it this way, "Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever."  In verse 2, Isaiah writes, "The people who walk in darkness Will see a great light; Those who live in a dark land, The light will shine on them." (NASB)  At Christmas we think of the "star" the light that led with wise men to the Child.  Light will cast out darkness, and in the spiritual realm so much more.  "The light of grace was breaking into the self-inflicted gloom of sin." (Alistair Begg)  Begg continues his thought, "The good news of Christmas is that the God of the Bible is the God of grace, who comes into the darkness and emptiness of our hearts to bring His light, His joy, and His peace."
     So don't get into a frenzy with the lights of Christmas as they represent the greater Light.  If there is darkness in your heart, don't use the lights to try to brighten your soul, it will not work, and it will not last.  You, I, and all must come to the one Light, the Lord Jesus Christ.  The light of Christmas should not be seasonal, or even one day of the year.  "It is a Merry Christmas all the year round to a soul that has an unstaggering faith in the promises of the blessed God." (Charles Spurgeon)  Live in the Light, live in it daily, hourly, and gaze at the wonder of the Light that has now come to your life.
     "May your Christmas be filled with grace over perfection, presence over pressure, and love over everything else." (unknown)  In other words as the Light shines in your heart let it glow so that others may see and have hope.

D.C. Adkisson