When Darkness is NOT Dark

I am memorizing Psalm 139 this year. On the first and fifteenth of each month I begin a new verse and spend the next two weeks thinking about that verse, asking God what He wants to say to me through it.

Going so slowly through the psalm has been a tremendous blessing to me. And although I've been ‘past’ verse 12 for some time now, it is the blessing of that verse that I want to share with you today.

“… even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.” Psalm 139:12 

As I spent time mulling over this verse, I was struck by the opposites: darkness/not dark, night/day, darkness/light. Regarding the darkness/not dark contrast, I was reminded that the things in my life that appear dark to me are not dark to God. He is not overwhelmed by the things that are overwhelming to me. Situations that are scary to me are not scary to Him.

And I had fun considering the opposites of night/day and darkness/light. When it comes to God and my circumstances, that which is confusing to me is clear to Him. When I don’t know what to do, God has perfect wisdom. Situations that are too much for me to handle are easy for God. Ahhh, what a blessed assurance!

What darkness are you facing today? Can you put a name on your circumstance (e.g., uncertainty, fear, chaos) and then come up with the opposite way God feels about it (e.g., clarity, confidence, peaceful)? As you look to God in the midst of your mess, I pray you will be encouraged to know that He can handle it!

Karen Hossink