If
it’s too dark to see…Listen!
I have loved to hunt all my life, mostly because of the influence of my father. There is no better place to be than in the woods and I can tell you that of all my experiences of being in the woods, I have never been lost…except once!
Of
course, luck would have it that the one time I did get lost, I had an old high
school friend visiting me. We got
out the bird dogs one afternoon and went to a place I hunted many times.
About an hour before dark, we had a covey of quail take us on quite a
chase. Cutover land all looks the
same and while it was barely light enough to see, I suggested we had better get
back to the truck. One wrong turn
and it was dark and when I say dark, I mean pitch black.
Even our bird dogs, mostly white, disappeared into night.
I could hear them beside us, but that was it.
It was a cloudy night…no moon…no stars…nothing.
Luckily we had found a road right before the last ray of the sun had
vanished and at least we were smart enough not to leave that point of safety.
And when it started to rain, I remember thinking, “Great…not only are
we lost, but wet too!”
Well, there we were. It was so dark
you couldn’t even follow the dirt road though we tried.
Finally, after about two hours, we heard the voice of a friend way off in
the distance. As we began to follow
that sound, it became louder and soon we were officially “found.”
I was pretty embarrassed and became the object of some pretty good jokes
in the days that followed…but at least it makes a good story and buried within
that story is a spiritual lesson.
It’s not all that difficult to follow God when our vision is clear…when the
days are nothing but blue skies and sunshine.
But as we all know, every day is not clear.
In fact, some days are dark…pitch dark.
It is within that darkness that we sometimes lose sight of God.
We are lost in our direction and can’t see which way to go.
And yet within that darkness, God calls out to us and if we are
listening, there is hope. That hope
comes from following His voice.
I
remember when I graduated from high school I received a Bible from the church I
attended. Written on the inside
cover of the Bible was a message from our minister, a man who made a powerful
impact on my life. Two weeks ago, I
had the pleasure of speaking at the church he now pastors.
I have never forgotten the words he wrote:
“Though you’ve only heard faintly, move toward the sound.
The struggle will be worth it.”
I
remember that night long ago when my friend and I were lost in the woods.
We could barely hear the shouts of those looking for us, but as we moved
closer, their words became stronger. The
struggle to reach them was worth it and brought us to safety…and dryness!
Though the darkness surrounds us, God is calling.
If it’s too dark to see, then may we listen…listen to His voice.
There are many distractions…other noise; but as we follow it, God’s
voice becomes clearer and stronger. He
will lead us out of the darkness and into His glorious light.
And we are assured the struggle will be worth it.
Thanks be to God…who never stops calling!
Billy