Embracing the Darkness

Originally sent January 31, 2024

The first time I saw the Milky Way Galaxy was visiting a dark sky park in Utah. I was completely awestruck! Sure, I had seen stars before, but it’s a completely different experience when you see the sky on a perfectly clear night without any light pollution. Amazing! Google will tell you that you can typically see about 62 miles during the daytime, up to where the atmosphere ends and space begins. However, at night it’s possible to see Andromeda, a collection of stars 2.5 trillion light years away. There is something about the darkness that brings clarity and perspective.

Darkness has a way of getting our attention and forcing us to deal with issues we would rather ignore. Broken relationships, doubts, disappointments, grief, and loss; can all be invitations to deepen our faith. Darkness can be scary, but there is also a beauty we only find in the darkness. My calling as a Spiritual Director is to companion with people who find themselves in dark places. My hope is that the places of darkness in your life will be opportunities for God to get your attention and see your world in a new way.

“I could ask the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night, but even in darkness I cannot hide from you. To you the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are the same to you.” Psalm 139:11-12