Shining Bright: God’s Plan in Dark Times

Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:15-20

Fall is a beautiful season. We can see God’s beauty outside as the leaves change color and transform our neighborhoods. Our streets are no longer just black asphalt; they are covered with leaves that are shades of orange, red, and brown. We feel a nice, crisp, cool breeze as we go outside. It is a wonderful time to sip hot drinks and cozy up with a blanket as we read.

Fall is also a season of transition; the old is passing away while the plant life and trees make way for the new and prepare for winter. Bare trees, flowers no longer in bloom, and increased rain can make the season seem dark and gloomy. We may begin to miss the longer days marked by the sun lighting up our surroundings. Whether we love fall or prefer summer, every season comes to an end and has a purpose.

The reality of seasons is just as true spiritually as it is naturally. Something interesting takes place during the physical season of fall; spiritual darkness seems to brood and is even celebrated by many. In Ephesians 5, we read that “the days are evil.” This will not surprise us, yet we should be keenly aware of what God is doing despite this. As Christians, we are told not to fear and to focus instead on God. We can make the most of every opportunity when we understand what He is doing during this time.

Even if our culture partners with the darkness, Christians can partner with God to see His light shine through us. As we read God’s Word, we learn and understand His will, plans, desires, and agenda. Ephesians 5 shows us that God is not moved by a seemingly dark season.

Through this Scripture, we can glean four ways that we can make the most of every opportunity, no matter the season:

1. Understand the Lord’s will—Spend more time in the Bible and less time on the internet. Understanding God’s will is more important than knowing every detail of what is going on in our world. God’s will is for us to be more like Jesus. We cannot control everything in our world, but we can do our part by allowing God the Father to conform us more to the image of His Son.

2. Be filled with the Spirit—We have a choice. We can be filled with the ways of the world or with the Holy Spirit. To be filled with the Spirit, we must simply ask Him to fill us. And as He fills us, we must remember to depend on Him and not to try to do things in our own power.

3. Worship—We don’t worship God to get something; we worship God because He is worthy. As we worship, though, God often moves. He enthrones Himself on our praises. As we go about our day, let’s sing songs of worship to our beautiful God. We don’t have to be loud and boisterous, but we also don’t need to wait for a church service to worship. We must learn to lead ourselves in worship and make music from our hearts for the Lord every day.

4. Give thanks to the Father for everything—Instead of complaining about all that is wrong around us, we must look for opportunities to thank God. The more we look at Him, the more thankful we will become. And even our culture recognizes that the fall is a beautiful season to count our blessings and thank God for all He has provided.

As the trees dig their roots deep in preparation for winter, they make way for new life in spring and summer. While our world may look dark and gloomy, and we see evil all around us, we can dig our roots deep into the Lord and press into Him like never before. We are in a season, and every season comes to an end. One day, we will look up in the sky and see our King coming on the clouds. Evil will be destroyed, and we will be in His glorious presence forever. New life is coming!

Be encouraged; in all the darkness, our God shines bright, and His light never goes out. In the meantime, focus on Jesus and get into the Word like never before. He is the King over every season of our lives.

By Keely McCartney, Contracted Writer for Biblica