It's early in the morning here and darkness is all around me, literally. (This is not a picture of where I am right now it's a place I visit to spend time with my mom.) Anyway back to the darkness of the morning. I don't know why this time of day seems to intrigue me. I know the sun will soon rise but it's still so dark. If there were geese on my lawn I wouldn't know, well except for their annoying squawks. The darkness frightens me, I don't like it. I think it's the unknown, the hidden and the dark places where I can't see what's in front of me that fills me with fear. But it's this time of day just before the sunrise that I absolutely love. You know that time in the morning when the sun slowly begins to kiss the horizon and dispel the darkness. The sky slowly begins to turn from black to blue and the shadows that were once hidden, some to light.
As I sit here typing the world around me is slowly coming to life. Kitchen lights are being turned on, cars are getting warmed up ready for to take their driver to work or school. Bedroom lights begin to pierce the darkness as people get ready for their busy day. I can smell the coffee brewing as I type. Showers are cleaning off yesterdays messes as we begin to prepare for a new day. The geese are starting to wake up, I hear them now. Kids getting ready for school, parents getting ready for work, streets begin to be filled with traffic running here and there and everywhere. Once the sun rises and lights begin to shine, we forget about the darkness and move on in our fast paced world.
As we move and go and do our day begins to fill with the stresses of every day life here in America. From the moment our feet hit the floor in the morning, our feet don't stop until bedtime. That's the time the darkness returns and the regrets of what we didn't do, the thoughts of what we should of done, the ideas that never came to pass and the reality of what could have been fill our minds until we can't sleep. We toss and turn as our mind continues to process the stresses of today and our mind fills with the worries about tomorrow. Our dreams, if we sleep, are filled with torments and regrets. We wake up tomorrow and begin this same path all over again. Day after day, night after night the same old vicious circle keeps up tied up in knots and stresses us out until we become so physically ill that we break.
I've seen it for myself, I've heard people's stories about how stressed filled their lives are. I have noticed that there is a darkness that surrounds these people. They are literally living life under the attack of the enemy. That's right I'm talking about Satan. He is alive and he is out to get us. He wants us so rushed, so distracted, so deceived that we live this life in ways God did not want us to. Let me ask some hard questions that I have had to ask myself... Is that job that stresses you out worth the income you're spending at the doctors? Are you so busy running errands that you're missing your child's or grandchild's performance? How much more can you take? Do you feel like your gonna break? What is your first thought of the day?
I recently ran into an old friend I haven't seen in almost 5 years. In those 5 years he had aged 20 years. His face was filled with lines from all the worries and regrets. His health was struggling from all the stress of trying to make a buck and please people. In the last 5 years he had spent numerous amounts of money trying to figure out why he was in so much pain and felt so ill most of the time. It was sad. I felt so bad for him. Stress is a darkness and a strategy of Satan that steals our joy, kills our family life, and destroys our health. The best remedy for stress that I have found is diving into God's Holy Word first thing in the morning. Before we get dressed, before we get busy, before the darkness can get a hold of us....get your Bible and read it. If you have to blow the dust off it, do it. Trust me, it defeats the enemy before he can get started.
Psalm 119:105 (The Passion Translation) Truth's shining light guides me in my choices and decisions; the revelation of your word make my pathway clear.
If you are reading this and do not know Jesus please don't stop reading. Jesus Christ is the only pathway to an eternity in heaven. God is waiting for you with open arms. He's waiting to love you with a love you cannot even comprehend. He's waiting to forgive you for all of your sins. Jesus Christ died to testify to the truth that He is the only way and the only truth. He took away my sins, He took away my stress, He took away my worries, His Word lights my path and pierces the darkness. I surrendered because His way was much better than mine. His path way much brighter than mine. When I totally surrendered, I also gave up my worries. It wasn't easy at first and if I'm honest there are still times I try to take my worries back, but in the end I always give Him back all my worries, all my fears and all my life.
In doing this I have a peace that surpasses all understanding. I have faith that has been tested by fires. I have a love that is beyond my comprehension. Please take a moment and consider making Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior. Trust me it will be the greatest decision of your life.
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