I find it interesting how God uses situations/opportunities to show us profound moments in our lives that either encourage us or show us how much more we need to grow in trusting Him.
Last night, we had a great dinner with dear friends celebrating our wedding anniversary’s together. They are truly a gift from God. Our friends anniversary is today, July 18th and ours is the 19th.
After arriving back home, while my husband and I were sitting in our sunroom talking, in just a second out of no where it was almost as if someone flipped a switch. The lights went out. No sounds, just complete darkness. There was no panic, no negative feelings, or real concerns. We both just got up, gathered our lanterns to bring light back into the house. Two of our lanterns were not coming on. The batteries were dead. While my husband opened them up, I was bringing the batteries into the living room for him to replace them. Peace still filled the rooms. After over an hour, we went to bed. Still pitch dark inside and outside. While laying there trying to drift to sleep, we were grateful for the storm that passed earlier in the night that cooled the temperatures down outside. The house was still cool and we fell asleep. I’m guessing about an hour later, I woke up to a bright light shining in my face. The power was back on.
I quickly got up, turned all of the lights back off that were on when the power went out, and made our coffee for the morning — we love the timer on our coffee pot as we love the smell of fresh brewed coffee when we wake up. As I crawled back in bed, I felt blessed and fell quickly back to sleep.
This morning, I looked at my husband and said, “When the light’s went out last night, do you realize there was really no negative emotion from either of us? We just got up found the lanterns to bring more light back into the house and enjoyed the rest of our evening.”
This may seem like a simple moment for some, but what I have realized is that our dependence in Jesus is becoming more real in our lives. He showed us that we are being conditioned to trust Him without an emotional response. It is peaceful. It is encouraging and this was a great opportunity for us as we continue to learn that our hearts are becoming more dependent on Him. He truly is EVERYTHING and apart from Him, we have no peace or joy no matter the situation we are faced with.
I think of these scriptures as they encourage us and hope they will encourage you too:
1 John 1:5
“This is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.” Let’s focus on keeping our lanterns full so we aren’t left out in the darkness.
Psalm 16:8
“I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With Him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”
Yes, there are times that we are still shaken and our emotions take over. There are still times that we are afraid, but, I am happy that last night reminded us once again how much we have grown in Jesus, and life’s opportunities are so much easier with Him as our guide. He is our lighthouse in the darkness and with Him, all things will be made new.
2 Corinthian 5:17
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”
Thank you for reading and allowing me to share my heart with you. ❤
Lord, help us to keep our eyes on You as our guide, and our lanterns full, so we may be a beacon of light for others in a dark world.
Always Believe and Never Give Up!
Martha Gayle ❤