A fractured tibia plateau followed by an ankle avulsion fracture kept me off my feet for months. Each night, I parked a borrowed wheelchair beside our bed so that I could reach and use it if I needed to get up during the night. In the shadows of the dark room, I woke my husband more than once as I misjudged the opening to the bathroom door. As much as I like to sleep in a dark room, I needed more light to maneuver myself quietly in the chair without waking him.  

Several of the nightlights I tried were too bright. One was dim enough not to interfere with sleeping. However, I still needed a soft light inside the bathroom to see where I was going. There were no outlets in that part of the bathroom. No problem. A mid-sized wax pumpkin with batteries, part of my fall decorations, added the right amount of soft light to get me into the room without banging into the door frame or hitting the closet doors. Problem solved!  

Turning off the overhead light, I climbed into bed. The room was completely dark until my eyes adjusted, and I began to see the nightlights fulfilling their purpose. It has to be dark to see and appreciate light!  

As a global worker, how often do I dwell in the fog of a figuratively dark place, searching for God’s light to guide me through? Am I regularly asking God to use me as a light to guide and encourage others through their dark places? 

We don’t always need the same kind or amount of light. My fall pumpkin is now packed away with other decorations. I no longer need it. In the same way, our loving Father knows what we need at any given time and never fails to provide guidance and direction when we trust Him to do so. 

When circumstances shroud the light and life goes dark… when confusion sets in, and I have no idea where I am going or how to escape the darkness, I have only to trust and pray, then wait for God’s light. Just as the nightlight was there before my eyes adjusted and could see it working, God is there time after time, waiting for me to see His light and find comfort and guidance in its glow. 

“Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.’” John 8:12