New Dawn, New Light

As the rising sun drives darkness to the other side of the earth, a breathtaking, sky beautifully announces another day to continue our story and to possibly change its narrative.

Imagine what the dawning of creation must have been like! It was so spectacular that God was impressed enough to begin His story with humanity …God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light/ And God saw that the light was good/ Then he separated the light from the darkness/ God called the light “day” and the darkness “night”/ And evening passed and morning came, marking the first day. (Genesis 1:3-5 (NLT2)

Some consider the Genesis account as simply poetic literature and an imaginative attempt to explain human origin; others believe that God’s speaking light into existence was one of His first, literal, creative acts related to life on this earth. Whatever we are on the spectrum of beliefs, we need light to live both physically and spiritually. Those who experience Seasonal Affective Light Disorder know that.

Surprisingly, we tend to live in spiritual shadows, but when God steps onto the scene, there is light because “God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all.”(1 John 1:5) When we begin to understand who God is, who we are, who we are meant to be, and how to become that person, He dispels the darkness of our insecurities and doubts and of  our feelings of being minimized and unloved. Also, God doesn’t let us drift  into self delusion and self concealment where we deny or justify our flaws and avoid responsibility for consequences of our inappropriate behaviors and attitudes, where we are unabashedly self righteous, biased, judgmental, unforgiving, unrepentant, and detached from the injustices and misery around us, and even where we can lack integrity,  be dishonest, treacherous, greedy, malicious, proud, immoral and selfish and not assume guilt. It is obvious we need transcendent light in order to become emotionally and spiritually healthy.

We find that illumination through Scripture which is a “lamp” and a “light” for our journeys (Psalm 119:11, 105) and in Christ, who is the “Light of the World. ” (John 8:12) God does not expose us to condemn us; He informs or enlightens us in order to heal us. As we understand our darkness and need for redemption in view of God’s holiness, we begin to comprehend the depth of God’s great love and compassion for us. He rescues us “from the kingdom of darkness and transfer us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins.” (Colossians 1:13-14)

As he stood awaiting condemnation before Pilate, Christ stated that the purpose of his incarnation was “to  bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” Pilate’s subsequent question may have been cynical, but it is a universal and sincere one: “What is truth?” (John 18:37-38) Truth is the light we all seek, and Christ said he was that light, that he was Truth. (John 14:6) What are we to do with those statements?

We are to be wise and to “redeem the time.” (Ephesians 5:15-16) and to “walk as children of light”  (Ephesians 5:8-15) (Matthew 5:16) In other words, we should face every sunrise in the context of who we are meant to be as spiritual people because of God’s beautiful mercy and grace that put us into His Kingdom. We find hope and wholeness in faith. Those who revere God and “esteem His Name,” (Malachi 3:16)  have been promised that ^”…, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings.” ( Malachi 4:2)  That dawn will fill the heavens with great beauty and joy. God’s steadfast love and faithfulness will push the darkness away and reveal a glorious  righteousness which will bring healing for all humanity’s injustices.