Seasons of Darkness

At this present moment, I am not in a season of darkness. And praise the Lord for that! But, I am writing because I know that we often face such times as believers.

As Christians, we are under attack. No matter what the day, time, or season, the Enemy is near and trying to stop us. But, always remember:

"No evil will conquer you; no plague will come near your home. For he will order his angels to protect you wherever you go" Psalm 91:10-11

"Do not give the Devil an foothold" Ephesians 4:27

"Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days" Ephesians 5:15

These are just a few of the many verses that I love to read in dark days. We all have them and we all fear them. Sometimes, we don't know that we are even in them. Dark days come and go swiftly in the night. They grab us when we are most vulnerable. They take over our entire being without us even knowing it. 

Here is a quote that I find humorous and yet so true:

"Madness: does not always howl. Sometimes, it is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, 'Hey, is there room in your head for one more?'"

You may recognize this from Despair.com...honestly, it is one of my favorite sites. Why? Well, while being extremely humorous, it also brings the horrible reality of what life really is in just one simple sentence...

Think about it...at the end of the day you are tired, exhausted, mentally/physically/emotionally drained. You do not want to deal with a spouse, boyfriend, girlfriend, kids, family, bills...etc. This is the perfect opportunity for the Enemy to make his move. You are vulnerable. You are weak. This is the time when you retreat and the Enemy attacks. 

Life is a battle and do not live as if it were otherwise. If you do, I fear you fall. Stand strong or stand for nothing at all. Fight for what you know to be true. 

Here is what I read in my devotional tonight:

"Our pleas for His intervention seem to go unnoticed; our questions remain unanswered; our problems linger. Where is He in our pain? He doesn't say. We have theological answeres to such questions, and we trust that He is near. But we long for His touch - His solutions. We want Him to fix things for us...Yes, there are dark times in a believer's life, but God is still there. He honors faith that survives the darkest nights. He strengthens souls with the most painful instruments. And in the end, His gifts and glory compensate for any hardship we had to face"

So you see? We all go through trials and tribulations. That is what we signed for when devoted our lives to Christ. But, He fights the fight. We are only the instruments. His symphony is better than anything we could have imagined. However, he needs our hardships and struggles to better orchestrate His finished masterpiece. He is the conductor. He knows and sees how the orchestra will come together for it's final performance. And there is a standing ovation awaiting.

A few things to leave you with tonight...

First, one prayer that I think is helpful in dark times:

"Father, thank You that seasons of darkness are rare, and thank You for the knowledge that they are only temporary. Do what you need to do in me, but please let me feel the encouragement of Your touch often"

And, one of my favorite musical numbers...just picture yourself in the music, God is the conductor, you go through the story, you experience different emotions, and the end you create a Concerto with the Creator.

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Arrivederci Ya'll :)