Stumbling Through the Night

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105).

The clouds were masking the light from the moon and stars, and the evening was dark at Camp Chi Rho. I was tired after a long day of hanging out with the kids, leading them in Bible studies and joining them in a series of games and activities. I had just left my cabin and was hurrying to the game room so I wouldn’t be late for our nightly staff meeting.

That’s why, when I realized I’d forgotten my flashlight, I didn’t go back to the cabin to get it. Instead, I focused on the slightly lighter part of the ground in front of me, staying away from the darker grass on either side. All I had to do was follow the path forward, and watch for the one place where it branched to the right.

There it was – a place where the darkness to the right of the path was a little less dark than the rest. My plan was working, and I still might make it to the meeting on time after all.

That’s when my right foot hit the front of a large stone. I pitched forward. My left foot swung up and planted itself on the top of that stone, saving me from landing face-first on the unyielding rock, but my momentum was still carrying me forward. I stepped ahead with my right foot, but there was nothing there.

I expected to step down twelve inches or so from the height of the stone, but my foot continued to fall through empty air. I finally hit the ground another two feet down, at which point I again pitched forward, banging my hands and forearms on the large rocks on the other side of the ravine I had encountered, and knocking the wind out of me.

I learned two things that night. First, I learned (or remembered) that God is good. I should have broken my leg that night, or at least sprained an ankle. But aside from an injured pride and a bruise on my right shin, I was ok.

The second thing I learned was that it’s not very smart to try to find your way along a path with no light to guide you. You won’t like where you end up, and you’re going to get hurt.

God’s Word is the light we need to make it safely through this life. With the lamp of Holy Scriptures to guide us, we can avoid the thorns, the pitfalls, and the stumbling blocks that would do us harm. The Bible points us to Jesus, and He will walk with us every step of the way until we are safely home with Him.

Prayer: Father, thank you for the precious gift of Your Word. May we read, mark, learn and inwardly digest every syllable, so that we will find ourselves living in Your light every day, and on that great and glorious day when Jesus returns, join You in the eternal light of our heavenly home. Amen.