Even a most familiar path looks strange in the dark

 Isn't it scary how even a most familiar path looks strange and difficult to navigate in the dark?  That realization came to me yesterday, as I held a white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel of my car while on a road I've driven on over a thousand times.  Tense shoulders, slower than usual speed and intense prayer came about on this supposedly familiar road, all because it was pitch dark.  

I felt lost.  Every curve was a surprise.  I had to pull over a couple of times to let impatient drivers pass me by.  I avoid driving at night...but this was morning...I just didn't remember how dark mornings are in the winter time.  I hated that drive.  My nervousness was intensified, I believe, because of my destination: the hospital's lab.  It was time for my thyroid checkup and that is a great source of stress in my life.

Sigh...

I'm happy to report that I made it safely.  But, as I sat in the waiting room at the hospital, waiting for my name to be called, I thought of the drive...and how that must be what it may feel like to "drive" through life without the guidance of the Light of God shining on our path...without Jesus...without the Bible.  I remembered the words of our Pastor last Sunday talking about how Scripture Alone is one of the pillars of our faith, perhaps the most important one, because it is precisely in Scripture where we meet God, where we see the Light...where we find Our Lord...Who is The Word Himself.  Without the guidance of the Bible, we are totally driving blindly...and added to that, there's the uncertainty of our destination without Scripture...sigh...  That would most definitely make one feel totally lost.

After my tests were done, I walked out of the hospital and daylight had come.  It kind of surprised me.  All I remembered was the darkness and I had forgotten it was actually morning.  I got in my car and drove the old-familiar road again.  And, what a difference light made!  I rode on that street like I owned it.  I zigged and zagged fearlessly and full of confidence...all due to the presence of the light.

I still would not know all the curves, potholes, detours and blocked lanes I will encounter along the pathway of my life, but I know, that as long as I have His Presence and His Light with me...as long as I continue my journey in the Word, I will be OK...and I won't be lost.