Let There Be Light
Have you ever had a doctor dilate your eyes?
I have been nearsighted since age eight, so I am all too familiar with the less-than-pleasant sensation of having my pupils pried open while a doctor peers at my retinas with a microscope and a flashlight.
It’s really not the eye exam that bothers me. That’s over and done in a few minutes. It’s the after-effects.
When your pupils are dilated, your eyes cannot control the amount of light that gets in. Peer into a mirror with the lights off. Then turn on a lamp. You will see your pupils go from large to nearly pinpoint in a matter of seconds.
Light is good.
Too much light is not good.
Since the moment God said, “Let there be light!” we have associated light with good and darkness with evil. Jesus called Himself “the light of the world.” In classic literature throughout the ages, light has symbolized love, life, wisdom, and insight. Light is knowledge. Light is understanding. Darkness is confusion and chaos.
If there is an area where I consistently struggle, it’s with a spiritual fear of the dark.
I want to know the plan. I want to know what’s coming. I want to see what’s next, and not just what’s next but what’s down the road and around the corner.
I want my life mapped out like an itemized schedule—married by thirty, kids by thirty-two, career change at thirty-seven, first book published at forty, second book published by...
You get the picture.
If only I could see the plan then I wouldn’t worry so much. I wouldn’t agonize over decisions, and I wouldn’t make so many mistakes.
My problem is not with doubt. Ephesians 2:10 reassures me that God does, indeed, have a plan for my life. It reminds me that God created me with purpose, on purpose, and for a purpose. I trust God’s plan.
I just want more than one piece at a time.
Could it be that just as too much light can damage our eyes, too much
information could damage our growth?
Psalm 119:105 describes God’s Word (the Bible) as a lamp for our feet and a light for our path. That means that God, in His infinite wisdom, has us on a need-to-know basis.
If God were to lay out everything for us in advance, He would do us a terrible disservice.
There would be no need for faith. No need for trust. No need for prayer, which would rob us of an intimate relationship with our Father. We would never know the thrill of watching Him come through in the most unexpected of ways, and never the growth that comes from the struggle.
We would simply resign ourselves to our lot and let things happen.
God loves us too much to tell us everything at once.
Here is what I know that I know:
• God loves you
• Because He loves you, He wants what is best for you
• He made you for something • He delights to watch you discover it
• His plan is far better than yours
Maybe you suffer from a spiritual fear of the dark, too. Perhaps God wants us to trust Him with our future so we can fully live in the present.
