Advent Begins In The Dark

Eric L had what I thought was a very good idea.

Why don’t I go through the archives and republish some stuff that people seemed to like when I posted it the first time?

It turned out to be one of the most soul damaging projects I’ve ever attempted.

You see it meant that I had to review the last ten years of my own writing…and what I saw has me in spiritual ICU.

All my writing has one theme behind it…a longing for Jesus to come into a situation and make it right.

I never really realized that before, but underneath everything else, that’s the constant theme.

Whether it’s a church abuse situation, or the state of the church, or my own personal situations, everything I write is a prayer for divine intercession.

Jesus hasn’t come yet.

A lot of my writing is me grappling with that reality and trying to keep the faith in spite of it.

Reality has been that the bad guys always win, and I’m personally in some really hard places.

Hope seems foolish and worthy of scorn…a sign of weakness and an inability to face reality.

The darkness has overtaken me and I no longer can save myself through religious sophistry or the spiritual gymnastics that (along with guilt) used to put me back on the narrow path to glory.

There is one last thing I can do.

Light a candle.

One candle by itself will not dispel the darkness, but it is a scream of rebellion against the darkness.

It is an act of faith in the face of unbelief.

It says that even though Jesus hasn’t come yet, He’s coming indeed, no matter how dark it gets.

I hope to see His goodness in the land of the living, but if not, I will see it where I go.

Advent begins in the dark, but it doesn’t end there.

Jesus does come, all the candles are lit but unnecessary, because the Light has come in person.

Some of you are experiencing the darkness with me, waiting for Jesus.

Light a candle.

Then we’ll have two…