Life and Light

“In Him was life and that life was the light of men.  The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. “

We are studying the book of John these days on the weekends, and as a family, we are memorizing John 1.  I have always found the language of John 1 to be exceptionally captivating, and at the moment it is my heart’s meditation.  I find myself fully captivated by the above verses because I feel like I am watching them unfold like a story before my eyes. 

In Him was life….and light……and NO darkness.  Stop and think about that.  Not any darkness.  Fully life and light.  Can you even really imagine it?  It’s hard for me to comprehend really.  The darkness is so present in this world and in every single one of us.  Even in the most lovely and lovable people we know, there is at least the shadow of darkness:  fear, sadness, anxiety, depression, sickness, pain, loss, anger, frustration.  The darkness has left none of us untouched. The darkness is always present with us.  We see it in ourselves, in our selfish choices and the way we seem to hurt each other without even trying to.  We see it in others, in their anxiety, anger, and pain.  We see it in our government, our politics, our environment, our school systems, our homes, and even our churches.  It’s not hard to find places that the darkness has broken.  We feel it present around us, and depending on the day, it can feel powerful and overwhelming.  It’s tempting to feel like the darkness in winning.  Humanly the battle against the darkness sometimes seems hopeless. And apart from Jesus, it would be.  

But, I find as I meditate daily on John 1, that I am captivated, not by the darkness but by the light.  One day this week, when the darkness felt as if it was suffocating hope, I cried out to God and begged Him to let me see the light so I would be able to hold onto hope and joy in the face of the darkness that was staring me down.  He answered in unmistakable ways.  He gave me opportunity after opportunity to speak truth into a hurting heart.  In an environment that is almost never quiet, He gave me long quiet stretches where it was possible to talk openly about the light.  In relationships where speaking life is often challenging, he opened doors and gave courage.  In dark moments, He sent me friends who despite physical and family obstacles came to sit and listen, but more powerfully, to pray.  Sisters from far away with no idea of my burden sent messages that they were praying for me.  I didn’t even know what I needed in this situation, except for divine intervention.  And at just the right moment, he sent a miracle that I wouldn’t have even known to ask for.  And I wasn’t the only one, this week I listened to story after story of places where the light broke through the darkness and silenced the skeptics, and gave new sight to hard hearts. 

Each act of love, of prayer, and of spoken truth was a beautiful reflection of the light; the light that continues to break through the darkness and offer hope, the light that can’t be pushed back, the light that offers life.  We can see it in a thousand ways when we look for it.  It is visible in a kind word, in a smile, in a heartfelt gift.  We catch glimpses of it in the majesty of snow, the coming of spring, the mountains, the vast oceans.  But all of these things are pale reflections of the true light:  Jesus. 

He is light and life.  In Him, there is NO darkness.  Can you even imagine the goodness of that, the hope in that, the power?  To not be damaged by darkness?  To have met it face to face and conquered even the strongest force of darkness:  death.  That is breathtaking.  That is the power I witnessed this week as I watched His life and light shine into a broken heart and pull it back from despair.  Only the true light can do that and I can’t turn my face away.  I want to live in such a way that I simply reflect it. 


In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.  All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.  In him was life and that life was the light of men.  The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.  …………..But to all who received him, who believed in His name, he gave the right to become children of God.  …………And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son of God, full of grace and truth.  For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.

That is what I received this week, grace upon grace: sufficient grace.  Grace to see the light, grace to stay connected to the living word, and grace to speak life into hopeless hearts.     


It is not hard to be captivated and overwhelmed by the darkness.  In a broken world we can see it everywhere we look.  It would be easy to get stuck there: frustrated, angry, overwhelmed, depressed, anxious, worried, discontent and hopeless.  But as Christians we have instead the daily opportunity through the spirit of truth living in us and through the word of God given to us, to be connected to the source of life and light.  When we see the world, the people around us, and our own lives, may we be captivated by the light.  May we find 10,000 reasons to give thanks and be always ready to give an answer for the hope that lies within us.  May we not turn away from those broken by darkness, but rather run towards them with light.  The light cannot be and will not be overcome.  So, I hope you look in the direction of the light and have hope. 

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