Leaving The Light On

Ok friends, I have a funny story to tell you. Something rather humorous happened to me at church today which struck me in an odd way. (Bear with me, as this may be considered "too much information," but regardless, here we go.)

You know how a lot of buildings nowadays have signs on their restroom doors saying: "To conserve energy, please turn the lights off as you leave. Thanks!" Well, the restrooms at my church are no exception.

It was nearing the end of service today when I needed to make my way to the ladies' room. I waltzed in, and as I made it to the middle stall, I realized that there were two older ladies in there with me. They were talking about the new night-light that had been plugged in next to the bathroom door.

One said, "I'm so glad they have a night-light now. I've had the light turned off on me while I'm in here so many times...then I can never find the door handle, or the light switch!"

The other replied, "Oh I know it! That has happened to me too. It's such a struggle to find the switch - it gets so dark in here!"

They continued chatting about this newest addition to the restroom wall for about another minute or so as they stood in front of the sinks and then made their way out. And of course, as they left through the door....they turned the lights off. I was still in there - and they were right, it was really dark.

I couldn't believe it. I had just listened to them go on and on about having the lights turned off on them while they were in the restroom, and how much they disliked it when that happened to them...and then they turned right around and did it to me, without even realizing it!

So there I was, trapped in the middle stall...alone, in the dark, with my only option being to attempt navigating the pitch-black restroom to find the door without knocking anything over.

The irony of this whole situation actually amused me...for a second. Until I had to fumble around in the darkness myself.

I thought, surely they must have seen me walk into the restroom. How could they not know I was still in here? Could they have forgotten about me that quickly?

I didn't have the answers to these questions, and decided to just accept my predicament for what it was. Thankfully, the dim gleam of our new ladies' room night-light helped me in my quest for the "on" switch. I flipped the switch and the lights came back on. Awesome.

After taking a second to be quite thankful that I had managed to avoid tripping over the restroom trash can and taking out the end table with the vase of flowers on it, I stood in front of the sink and stared into the mirror.

As I mulled over what had just occurred here in the solitude of this empty ladies' room, something else hit me that I thought was kind of odd....

How often do we, as Christians, do that exact same thing in our lives?

What I mean is, how often do we mourn that the "lights" in our lives have been "turned off" on us suddenly, without warning, only for us to turn around and manage to "hit the switch" on the lives of others without even realizing we've done so?

When other people cause unpleasant or inconvenient things to happen in our lives, we tend to make sure everyone hears about it. We will vent or complain to our family, friends, or anyone who will sit still long enough to listen.

But, as we do so, sometimes we manage to dump those problems on top of those we care about, and then waltz right out the door without even so much as a thought to what they might be going through.

Sometimes, "stuff happens" is the only thing we can say about the list of crazy things we deal with day to day. One bad thing right after another can occurr for stretches of time that seem to last for ages. It can be hard to handle.

We all eventually reach that breaking point - that place where it seems we just suddenly got left alone in the dark. That place where it seems we're stuck in a rut, have hit rock-bottom, or where we think all hope is lost. That place where we just can't take one more thing. And, when that happens, it's natural to feel frustrated, discouraged, abandoned, or let down.

It's in these times where it's so important to remember that God never leaves us. He's always right there trudging through our stuggles with us. He mourns with us in the dark times, but He also gives us hope and restores our joy, celebrating with us in the good times (we are reminded of this in Hebrews 13).

It's when we don't remember God's promises to us that we unwittingly bring the same strife that we are experiencing to the front doors of our neighbors.

Because we look to ourselves for the strength to get through our hardships and always come up short, we then tend to turn to others - wanting them to be strong for us...wanting them to somehow be able to make things in our lives better or easier. What we don't realize is that we can't rely on the faulty stability of other people forever. And as those unspoken pressures drain the energies out of those around us, we find we're still coming up short on courage and fortitude to deal with the situations we face. Not only that, but we've just managed to suck the joy right out of someone else. Plus, they have their own set of problems and hardships they are facing.

They too need encouragement from us, too. They need help, an understanding shoulder to cry on, or a pat on the back. They are in the dark, and they need love.

But we're so wrapped up in ourselves - so busy being consumed with our own problems that we forget to listen to what they are going through. We forget to see what they need. Sometimes we forget about them altogether. We turn the lights off on them. We leave them alone in the dark. It kinda starts one of those vicious cycles.

But, we can break that cycle by remembering Who is truly Sovereign when troubles come our way. Being a Christian isn't easy. We know that far too well. Jesus never said it would be easy, but He did promise us we'd always have His help - and, that He'd always love us where we are, but He'd never leave us where we are.

When we can focus on Christ in the midst of hardship, no matter how dark life gets, we can always see the gleam of a night-light guiding us back to the path. Leading us in the right direction, out of the dark and into His marvellous light. (1 Peter 2:4-10)

1 Peter 2, verses 9-10 say this:

"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy."

Jesus turns all of our darkness into light. We may be going through some rough times, but He never leaves us there.

He always takes us by the hand and leads us out of the deep, cold, lonely places we find ourselves in and brings us into hope, joy, and the brightness and warmth of His unchanging love for us. He's pretty awesome that way.

Now, as followers of Christ's example, we are called to do that very same thing for others - not by our own strength, but by pointing them to the only true Source of constant strength and courage.

By encouraging others who are struggling, we point them to Jesus and remind them of His promises. We allow God to restore their hope through us. Through our relationships, through our work, through our words. If we can see the glimmer of the night-light, we can lead others by its soft glow. We can take their hand, and show them where the "on" switch is.

So, next time you feel like you're fumbling around in the dark by yourself - keep your eyes fixed on that night-light. Follow it. It'll lead you to the Power switch. It'll lead you to the light.

And remember, always leave the light on for those following behind you.