Darkness Into Light

I will lead the blind by a way they do not know, in paths they do not know I will guide them. I will make darkness into light before them and rugged places into plains. These are the things I will do and I will not leave them undone. Isaiah 42:16

There was a time I walked in spiritual blindness and darkness. Before accepting Christ, I was blind to God, His Word, and His gift of salvation. My only Bible knowledge was that God had created the Heavens and the Earth, and that Adam and Eve were the first two people whom He created. That was it! I could not have told you anything about Jesus and what He did on the cross for each of us. I could not have told you a book of the Bible, the name of a person from the Bible, or the simplest Bible story. However, once I accepted Christ, I began reading the Bible and a whole new world was opened up to me.

Thirty years later I found myself with spiritual blindness and darkness once again. Although I knew many stories and principles from Scripture and I knew Jesus as my Savior, my Christian life was empty and what I believed about God was distorted. I could not walk in joy and peace when (to me) God seemed like a harsh judge with folded arms and One who tolerated me more than loved me. I feared Him, seldom read His Word, and sporadically prayed. From time to time there were brief moments of spiritual highs but they did not last.

I was blind to God's love for me. Blind to the fact that His love was NOT dependent on what I did. Blind to seeing His heart in Scripture. Blind to true freedom in Christ. Blind to living my life daily connected to the heart of God. The day I began to learn and embrace the truth about God and the Christian life was the day I sensed God's leading and guiding in my life. The light came on and the terrain changed.

Meeting with God each morning is now a high-light of my day. Prayer is now a conversation that runs both ways. Opening Scripture is now looked forward to and regular. My identity is found in Christ and I am guided by His Spirit instead of a list of do's and don'ts. My eyes have been opened as the "scales" of legalism have fallen. My hearing is no longer dulled to the voice of God.

Father, this is what You have always wanted for me. I am not the same person I was two years ago. Continue to do Your work in me. Amen.