October 31

Day 231: Dark

Like most Alaskans, I'm a little obsessed with weather forecasts. This weekend, however, requires no research, no looking to multiple apps to get the weekend story. I can look out the window. Any window.

The rain forest is being the rain forest. It is and will be windy. It will be rainy. Flash flood warnings will mean catastrophe for some neighborhoods. For us, just a little more water on the garage floor.

But something I never seem to see in a weather report. The prediction of darkness. During the day darkness. Returning to Standard time (tonight) will not help. I look out the window, and I am more impressed with the present darkness than I am with the weather.

Ancient people associated darkness with evil. Seagoing peoples did not fear the oceans because they were wet. They feared going under the waves, because of the darkness.

I've had conversations lately with other pastors. Some mentioned that they have been enduring a dry season in their spiritual lives. One called it a "dark period." Today's weather, today's darkness is perhaps a metaphor for the current experience of some.

I feel somewhat guilty that this is not my current state. Praise God, that it's not my current state. Yes, I can be a brooder. But for others, the present external darkness is a metaphor for internal darkness. I suppose.

We've all been there. And likely will be there again. Sometimes our faith instructs us to realize when we're in a dark space. Pity those, who without faith, do not see this when it is happening. Believers know where to turn.

King David, he of the most heart-exposing psalms, knew when he was in a dry season; when he was experiencing darkness. In Psalm 51, he prays a prayer that should be our daily prayer.

He gives us the words, to articulate what we need of God's daily provision. "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit in me."

None of us are particularly good at creating for ourselves a right spirit - a spirit that sees the seen and the unseen. We easily lose our perspective, our Christian world view, our hope. We need help.

Charles Spurgeon said, "None of us can be renewed without as real and true a manifestation of the Holy Spirit's energy as we felt at first, because the work is just as needed and just as great as it ever was."

That said, there remain some things we can do, to muscle through a dark period. We can, in fact we must continue in God's Word. We need to be reminded, daily, of God's character, His power to deliver on His promises to us.

Like King David, we must continue in prayer, even if, especially if we don't necessarily feel like doing so. Because these two vital activities lay a seed bed for the Spirit to do in us only what the Spirit can do. Renew us.

Saturdays at our house our our "sabbath days." Deb and I try to do as little related to work as possible. It's pouring rain outside. It's really dark.

So today, likely staying indoors, even if I don't think I'm particularly needy, I will pray for renewal. Renewal for me. And for you.

Darkness always comes. But it need not linger longer than its allotted time. Like the sun coming out (in our case, maybe in April) our renewal will also come.

Especially when we ask, plead, beg the Spirit to renew a right spirit in us.

-Mike Rydman, Lead Pastor, Radiant Church Juneau