Portrait of a Savior

God has made my heart faint;
the Almighty has terrified me;
yet I am not silenced because of the darkness,
nor because thick darkness covers my face.
Job 23:16–17 (ESV)

I like dark rooms. Sometimes I'll go into a room to do something and wait a few seconds before I turn on the light. But it's not that I'm particularly fond of the darkness. Rather, when a neighbor has their light on, I enjoy the way it softly shines silver into the room. I like the way the darkness emphasizes the light.

Without darkness we wouldn't know what light is. And without suffering and trials we wouldn't grow. In our discussions on Saturday nights we've been going over the the life of Job (which can be found in the Bible). If there was ever anyone who had to stare darkness in the face it was Job. He lost his family, his health, and all his goods. He had enjoyed a position of influence in the community and was sought after for his wisdom, righteousness, and generosity. But now people laughed at him. And if that wasn't enough, his so-called "friends" came to comfort him by telling him he was surely suffering for some great evil he had done. Job felt consumed and abandoned by God.

In Job's arguments with his friends he justified himself and called God to task. Job, like all of us, had a slightly warped view of himself, and by the end of the book, confessed that he had not really known God. But we all want answers when we're suffering. We all shake our fists at heaven.

But Job also knew that the only one who could justify him was the Sovereign One who had allowed all of this to happen. And that wreck-of-a-man said with such faith, "For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God." (Job 19:25–26 ESV)

Maybe you're going through a time of trial right now. Or maybe you're concerned about the growing darkness in our culture. (Thought the darkness is world-wide, let me assure you.) But, are we despairing and caustic, like Job, or do we let the darkness emphasize the light we carry in us? Will we be vitriolic, just like the rest of our culture, or will we respond in love and faith in our Savior who is sovereign over all that is happening?

I love photography. Breaking down the word, it means: to draw with light. In the midst of these trials and this darkness we have a great opportunity to draw a beautiful portrait of our Savior with the light that is in us. But we will have to be brave. We will have to boldly trust God and boldly love those around us even when misunderstood or mistreated.