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Thursday, August 14, 2014

Wars, Persecution, Suicide … What Do We Do With This Darkness?

Hi Friends,


What a disturbing time it is in the world.  Just this week, wars and rumors of wars.  Children beheaded and cut in two (I can barely imagine it).  Families chased from their homes, running for their lives because they won't renounce Jesus.  Nursing moms on the run, not even able to take diapers for their babies.  Robin Williams, who brought laughter to so many, takes his own life … and the laughter is silenced.

What kind of world do we live in?  I shake my head and feel my heart break.

We live in a broken world.  A world groaning for the return of its Savior.  A world that inflicts pain and hurt and hopelessness.  A world that is not what it was intended to be.


And yet . . .

It is a world that God loves, that He died to redeem, that He commissioned us to go into and make disciples, tell the good news of Him, bring hope.

But so often, I don't know how.  I find that I'm discouraged, that I'm the one fighting despair, that the darkness around me seems impenetrable.  

Sometimes I can't see how to move forward.  I cannot see at all.  So what do I do?  What can I do in this broken world, with my broken heart, with an aching soul?  

What do I do with this darkness … both within and without?  Lord, where do I go from here?

          Where Do I Go From Here?
Where do I go from here?
I often pray
For the path seems dark
And I cannot see.
Before me is fog and confusion.
Where do I go from here?
But then I take a step,
And that one step is illuminated.
Then another.
More light.
And another.
Until the path is lit,
One step at a time.

And He whispers to me, "When you turn to the right or when you turn to the left, your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” (Isaiah 30:21).  Walk. Just walk.  One step at a time, forward.  Wrestling with the impenetrable. A little light at a time.  Make a difference.  Find hope.  Beat back the darkness.  Conquer despair … just one little bit at a time, one step, one inch, one foot … it is enough.
Will you take one single step today to bring light and hope?

4 comments:

Judy Gordon Morrow said...

Beautiful, Marlo. I'm walking that one step at a time with you, thankful for the light our Lord gives for each next step.

Marlo Schalesky said...

Bless you, Judy! I've been thinking about you lately and praying for you.

Lisa Fletcher said...

Marlo,
Thank you for your post. Your words gave voice to my own heart today and encouraged me. I appreciate your reminder from Isaiah to look forward,to follow after our Hope. All this week my thoughts when they wander...when I felt full of the instability and pain that surrounds us, there was a voice inside of me reminding me to keep my eyes on Jesus, the One that restores, heals, comforts. My prayers are lifted today for so many that are suffering. May God make Himself real to those in such dire circumstances and bring them His peace and comfort.
Thanks for sharing your reflections with all of us.
Lisa

Marlo Schalesky said...

Thank you, Lisa! What a beautiful heart you have.