April 15, 2021 -- Psalm 18:27-28 -- The Light of the LORD's Love

For you save a humble people,
but the haughty eyes you bring down.
28 For it is you who light my lamp;
the Lord my God lightens my darkness.

Psalm 18:27-28 English Standard Version

One of the strongest memories of relief springs to mind with this passage. While I was in college I boarded at the home of Margaret Furman. She, a then retired senior who I had worked with in previous years in the college’s kitchen, opened up her home to me, for a laughably small token monthly rent payment. There were times when I’s be studying and she’d bake cookies and bring these to me while they were still slightly warm and soft. She’d have brewed coffee, poured out a cup adding just the right amount of sugar and cream to go with them. It was such a blessing. I remember one night when I was struggling with school, betrayed by friends and so discouraged. I was bicycling home at night after a long day. It is just four miles or so from the college campus to home. Half-way back the power went out through that section of town. It was eerily dark. It was frightening. The fear arose in me because of emotional weariness, it was too hard to shake off fears that were obviously baseless. So, half of the journey home was cycled in darkness and I don’t have proper reflectors or a lamp for my bike. Margaret had set up 5 candles on the window sill of the living room side window. The small window looked out over the side of the street where I’d be arriving home. In the black night those cheery candles were discernable a long way off. My heart was encouraged. To this day I can remember those five little candles, perched on a little candle stand that made the centre one highest, the two on either side slightly lower and the two outside candles on the lowest tier. The yellow and orange glow of the flames cast enough light to show the cheery red hue of the candles themselves.

When you know you have wandered far into sin or away from the LORD your God and are aimlessly pacing circles in ever darkening fears then the light of His presence is glorious. You are humble enough to know your need. You are not going to argue I can do this by myself—in fact, in the warm light of His blessings you will like a starving beggar grabbing hold of an offered gift of a coffee and a muffin take to yourself every gift of His grace generously given in Jesus Christ—the Light of the World. You will, prompted by the fresh presence of the Spirit, confess everything that cast you into the terrible darkness so that you will not return to it. You will in the light of all the Word continues to teach you, continually, humbly confess your sins and all the things which would threaten to lead you back into the horrors of darkness—not because God is hard and cruel, but because you have experienced such darkness and such fearful wanderings that your soul knows the hopelessness of it all and refuses to return to it. No wonder the Psalmist began by declaring at verse 1 ‘I love you, O LORD, my strength’!

I love You, O LORD, my strength!

In my distress I called upon the LORD;

to my God I cried for help.

From HIs temple He heard my voice,

and my cry to Him reached His ears.

For this I will praise You, O LORD, among the nations,

and sing to Your Name.

Psalm 18:1,6,49

Today’s song selection is based on Psalm 27

https://youtu.be/_nZJL6Hauk0