It’s been a difficult few weeks. To say the least, it’s been a difficult few weeks. The challenges each of us has faced, the fears confronting us daily, our concerns about the future and (most certainly!) the future of our children, cause our knees to weaken and our shoulders to sag. To compound the problem, this unseen enemy we currently face is paralleled with the crush of our economic realities crashing down around us. Into this moment, what shall we do?

Feb 07, 2008  The light of darkness (LifeCity.tv).

Our fears compel us to retreat even further, even beyond our quarantine and into the depths of our souls. Our fears whisper to us this is for our preservation, to protect ourselves from even further damage. What lies “out there” that might seek to do us even further harm? The darkness feels heavy and anxiety hangs on us like a poorly fitted jacket. From a historical perspective, I found another Easter that didn’t quite feel right. Go with me back to 1865. On Good Friday, April 14, 1865, President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated.

They called it “Black Easter.” The sense of gloom, sadness and foreboding that hung in the air was almost overwhelming. If we might borrow from them, how did they find their way through the darkness? The president’s pastor took a passage and let it be the guiding light, a light in which perhaps, we too, can find solace: Psalm 46:10. “ Be still and know that I am God.”. We would do well to stop and consider this wisdom in our upside-down days.

Our normal activities have ground to a screeching halt. For how long? It’s anyone’s guess. The uncertainty about what our new “normal” will look like is just as far out of sight.

But we can know this: Our God rejoices in our stillness. It’s in that moment of quietude that we can – finally – hear from him; when we surrender the notion that noise and activity are inexorably connected to productivity.

If we’re still, the presumption is, we’re not productive. Who will I trust to meet my needs?Before this crisis arrived, most of us could trust in ourselves to meet our needs.

Most of us had enough money to meet our physical needs and enough relational connections to meet most of our relational needs. We thought we had little to no need for God. But the fact is, we all have spiritual needs. We are wired as spiritual beings. Blaise Pascal, the noted French mathematician from the 17th century and author of Pascal’s Wager. This theory stated each person wagers his or her life on whether God exists.

In summation, he said it best: “There’s a God-shaped void in each of our lives.” You can put other things there – they just won’t fill the void. Who will you trust to meet your needs?

Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12). Do you need some light in this darkness? Make sure you’re trusting the right person. Whom will I serve?If I am to either find or bring light to a dark place like Christ did, I must choose to serve as he did. Service means humility.

Humility demands I put others’ ahead of my own needs. I shouldn’t be my first priority. It means I get to embrace a servant’s tools – just like Jesus did. That’s not easy right now, but it still can be done. Here’s how:— Look for how I can serve those around me in my own home. What need do they have that my skills can meet for those in my family. Let someone choose a daily game to play or their special movie to watch.

Yes, even that is serving someone. Designate a day as someone’s “special” day. There’s no need to wait for an anniversary or a birthday – every day is special! Celebrate it by serving the people in your home.— As for people who aren’t in your home, sit down and write someone a letter.

With pen and ink and everything. It’s amazing what a piece of “real” mail does for someone.— Do a “drive by” – honk and wave as you go by!— Use your phone to call your neighbors (even if they’re not in the house next door) to check on their well-being.

Personal contact is highly under-rated normally, but not now.— When and where you’re able, give of your treasure. The church I’m privileged to pastor, First Baptist Church, recently had an opportunity to do something really cool! RIP Medical Debt is a national service that locates people who have outstanding medical bills. In cooperation with local entities, RIP Medical Debt and our church, we were able to locate nearly 3,000 Permian Basin families who had outstanding medical debt hanging over their heads. Though we as a church have no idea who these people are, we knew it was the right time and the right opportunity.

I’m delighted we had the chance to help. Here’s the funny part: When we started this process, it was December. No one had even heard of the coronavirus and oil was $50 a barrel. But God knew that those families would need a light in their darkness, and we were able to give just a little to make that happen.— In essence, serve as you would want to be served.

Give as you want to receive. One of the challenges we face with this moment in time is the drive toward self-protection and shrinking back in fear. Fear can lead to bitterness, anger and ultimately even greater isolation. True, self-protection is a healthy and powerful force and reflects good sense. But if you never give and only receive, you become akin to the Dead Sea. The Dead Sea becomes so because it only has inlets – it does not have an outlet.— What story will I tell those who come behind me about this dark time?

Start at what story you want to tell and then “draw a line” back to where you are. How do I want this time to be written about in my family history? As a dark time of anger, frustration, bitterness and harsh words or a time when we overcame the darkness with the light of hope?Recently, a friend gave me the chance to try out a genealogical website. Super little acorns 3d turbo game download. I didn’t think much about it until I sat down and started looking. Before I knew it, I had spent three to four hours piling through census records, birth and death certificates, marriage licenses and voting records. What I found amazed me.

It wasn’t that I’m related to anyone famous or noteworthy, but that they lived their ordinary lives on purpose. They were farmers, pastors, teachers, ranchers, railroad engineers, soldiers – they left their tracks in the sands of time for me to follow.

Their call to me in this dark time is simple: “This, too, shall pass. Keep walking in the light God gives and push the darkness back.”So now we return to Easter. The first Easter wasn’t remarkably different from this one. People’s expectations had been crushed. They were devastated at what they had lost, and the future was unclear at best. Their hope in Jesus had been dealt a devastating blow when he was crucified. But it’s no accident John 20 begins at sunrise.

Out of the depth of the darkest night they’d ever known came a hope they never expected. God has a way of doing that. Bringing light to dark places is his specialty! If you’re in a dark place today, call out to the God who brings light into the darkness. He does his best work on Easter.Darin Wood is senior pastor of First Baptist Church.