"You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness."
Friends, those are some powerful words. I don't know about you but I am afraid of the dark. Part of it comes from walking around the block at 5 AM most mornings with my trusted dog, Howler. It is dark in my neighborhood in places and with some vacant lots, a few abandoned houses, noises are scary. We've never come across a person who meant us harm but we have encountered a few snakes and several coyotes. You usually can smell the coyotes before/if you see them.
But a real part of me is scared of the dark because of what it hides -- i.e. bad people.
When Cole was born, I got really scared thinking about how I would get both my children out if someone came in the house. It didn't help matters that Don was traveling a lot then and Matthew seldom slept through the night so I was really sleep deprived. It got so bad that I quit sleeping entirely unless Don was home. My mother noticed and when I told her what was going on, she told me to come to the house, get Nathan's aluminum baseball bat and put it just under my bed. Then when someone came in the house, I should kill them. She was matter of fact about it. I believed her, got the bat, and started to sleep again.
But I don't watch scary movies and I don't want to read about house break-ins and I really don't want to hear about how bad people are to one another.
Paul says we are people of the light. We are supposed to act like that. Not cower, and for goodness sake, not doing behavior that is inappropriate to light filled spaces.
It comforts me that God has claimed me for his daylight child.
What doesn't comfort me is our OT reading -- Jeremiah 19:1-21:14
Bad, bad things were going to happen to the people of Judah and Jeremiah knew it.
But in all fairness, the people of Judah were not acting as if they were people of the light. And they knew it.
The Psalmist also speaks to this -- but on the reverse side. It is like WE want other to get their punishment but when WE stray, we don't want God to do that to us?
Maybe the prophets give me the shivers because I DO know when I am not walking in the light.
Much to think about today.
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