There is nobody home. Very good. That was easy. And there is perhaps only one thing worse than that! How about this-- The Lights are OFF and there is nobody home. I recently came across a reading of C.S. Lewis while reading of our Lord's Passion, his road to suffering and death on the cross. I have edited Lewis' writing to make it a bit more understandable to the modern ear. (Any Purists please forgive me) It is from Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer:
Does not every movement in the Passion of our Lord register a common element in either our own suffering or the suffering of those around us? First, the prayer of anguish (Garden of Gethsemane): Not granted. Then Jesus turns to His friends. They are asleep--as are our friends at times or perhaps we ourselves-- asleep, or busy, or away, or preoccupied. Then He faces the Church; the very Church that He brought into existence. It condemns Him. This also is characteristic. In every Church, in every institution, there is something which sooner or later works against the very purpose for which it came into existence. But there seems to be another chance. There is the State . . . its pretensions are far lower than those of the Church, but for that very reason it may be free from local fanaticism's. It claims to be just on a rough, worldly level. Yet, but only so far as is consistent with political expediency. Other factors may come in and override all legal and moral considerations. One becomes a counter or a mere chip in a complicated game. But even now all is not lost. There is still an appeal to the People-- the poor and simple whom He had blessed, whom He had healed and fed and taught, to whom He Himself belongs. But they have become over-night (it is nothing unusual) a murderous rabble shouting for His blood. There is then, nothing left but God. And to God, God's last words are "Why hast thou forsaken me?"
Commentary: Hmmmm. The above is to go darker than dark, a darkness as occurred during the Passover night that turned bad for the Egyptians. It was said to be a darkness that can be felt. Indeed . . . and it was worse for our Lord as the Father actually turned His back on His own Son as He poured out holy wrath upon Him. Dark as Pitch. Well, what about us in our times of utter darkness?
Consider Isaiah 50:10a: "Who is among you that fears the Lord, that obeys the voice of His servant, that walks in darkness and has no light?" Now consider this: a faithful servant of God in the dark and can see no way out. There are many people around us that this describes--or perhaps it is you. Following God but He is seemingly gone and the temptation is to curse God and die. Well, there are two choices given in this passage for Isaiah for them (or us) during these times:
1. "Let him trust in the name of the Lord and rely on His God. " (Isaiah 50:10b) Yes, even when it is pitch black and everyone, including God seems to have vacated your life. This is the way to go. Or . . .
2. "Kindle a fire, encircle yourself with firebrands, walk in the light of your fire and among the brands that you have set ablaze." (Isaiah 50:11) In other words, rather than wait for God create your own light and solution. This is an option but be warned: such will lie down in torment according to Isaiah 50:11b.
Even when all is dark, when the lights are out and there seems to be nobody within miles and miles . . . though the fig tree does not blossom, though there be no fruit on the vine, though the flocks are cut off, though there are no cattle in the stalls, though you have lost a job or a friend . . . or whatever your loss . . . Yet, Yet, Yet I will exult in the Lord, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation. Let Him make your feet like hinds' feet and make you to walk on your high places. See Habakkuk 3:17-19
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