God Does His Best Work in the Dark

“All things were made through him (Jesus), and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

+John 1:3-5

In high school geography class, I cheated on a test. I drew a small likeness of the United States and several state capitals on a sliver of paper which I neatly concealed in my palm, out of sight of the teacher. I aced the test but have since regretted the decision. What I thought was an innocent act could have cost me the grade and possibly failing the class. What I concealed was shameful and could have cut short my high school career. This was before I became a Christian my sophomore year.

God works differently. He works best in the dark moments. He is in the business of turning our shame into praise. Just as the psalmist sought to do, we must seek God in our dark moments. When life blindsides us with a cancer scare, a sick relative, a suicidal teen, we need to cling to Him for help and hope. In this current season, I have faced great darkness. Satan has attacked relentlessly my thoughts and I have been afraid, very afraid.

A Bright Light in the Darkness

At the same time, the Lord has been teaching me several things: First, fear God instead of the world. Second, trust God in the dark. Third, pray your fears to God. Fourth, call upon the army of heaven to fight your battles. Fifth, quote Scripture when you are afraid. Finally, don’t listen to your feelings, preach truth to yourself. The longer I am a Christian, I keep learning that God does his best work in the dark. In the darkness of our sin, our mistakes, our failures, our wrestling, our broken relationships and uncertainty, God does his best work. In Scripture, just before the splitting of the Red Sea there was a swarming army. Just before there was a saving ark, there was a global deluge. Just before the resurrection, there was an empty cross and a silent tomb.

Then, came Moses, Noah and Jesus. Resurrection and redemption pepper the pages of Scripture and resound as the theme of our lives. Like turning on a light in a dark room, God dispels the darkness and brings hope and redemption. That dark thing in your life, turn it over to God. You may never be able to change that loved one’s behavior, the hard breakup or that lingering addiction, but you can always turn to Christ, the Light of the World. Satan can throw all the arrows he wants our way, but we have the shield of faith to quench his arrows. Scripture reminds us, “Greater is he who is in you than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4). We have the Holy Spirit to help fight our battles. Take heart believer, God does his best work in the dark.