Will there be shadows in heaven, I wonder. We think of shadows as dark and darkness as evil. The Light overcomes the darkness. God separated the light from the darkness, as we read in Genesis, but does the dark represent evil all of the time? The dark night sky draws attention to the full moon that I watched ease up over the horizon last night, absolutely brilliant. Late afternoon autumn leaves dance with the breezes, their shadows projected onto my living room window - beauty that I would not have otherwise noticed. I love shadows in my photographs, adding layers of story and complexity. Would I have noticed the tree in the image above if there was not a shadow of its gnarled and twisted physical body?
Are shadows and darkness two different things? The shadows are caused by the light and draw our eyes back to the light. Why is it that in such a dark year, the year that is not over but is already being used as an adjective to describe anything that can possibly go wrong, am I, more than ever, aware of the Light? In this challenging, in many ways dark year, the Word of God has never been more fully illuminated in my reading.
Psalm 91:1 “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.”
If we do feel the darkness of the world right now, may we hold onto the hope as we are reminded this time of year that the Light has overcome the dark. And sometimes a shadow reminds us that there is Light -- and because of that Light, we can find rest in His shadow.
I have no thorough answers today. My thoughts will continue to wonder and wander on these ideas, but I do pray that all of my wondering and wandering always bring me back to the Light.
Heavenly Father, may the shadows + darkness lift our eyes to You, our Light + our salvation. Even when the darkness threatens to overwhelm us, we know that we can rest in the shadow of the Almighty. Keep our eyes open and our heads lifted to see the Light of the world.