The Light in the Darkness

I’m feeling a bit thoughtful this Christmas season, and wanted to share some things that have struck me recently, and other things I’ve been remembering. This will be a more sober post than other Christmas devotionals, but I wanted to speak to anyone who might have felt as I did before I knew Christ.

The image above was made by my friend Pammer James on the YouVersion Bible app, and I especially liked it for Christmas because it brings that particular verse in the gospel of John into focus during this season.

In Jesus is life, a light shining in the darkness.

As a teenager, I had a bad bout of depression. Everything around me was pain and sadness and darkness.

But the moment I surrendered my life to Jesus, I felt peace for the first time in a long time, and I was not so lonely and filled with pain. Life was still hard, but the darkness was not as dark anymore, because I had Jesus lighting the way through a difficult time.

This season can be hard because everything is bright with colored lights, cheerful music, and loved ones being together. If you have a place of dark loneliness inside you, it can seem ever blacker and more isolating during this season.

I have known that kind of darkness, and I found a light with Jesus. I am praying that you will reach out to Him so that He can give you peace from your pain. The bright light of Christ is warm and kind. You do not have to suffer alone.

If you already know Christ, my prayer is that the light of Jesus will fill you with a sense of His powerful presence in the midst of busyness and a full social schedule. If Christ is in us, His light is shining inside us with his love for us, and we shine His light to others.

I wish you all a truly blessed Christmas.

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Psalm 103:2-3