Choosing Light over Darkness!
I don’t begin to understand some of the pain we must endure in this life. Lately, I have had my share of it and pain can be quite life changing. One of the changes for me has been being faced literally with the most important choice of my life; To choose light or to choose darkness. In the last few weeks I have faced that choice as many times as there are minutes in a day. I can tell you that often I chose darkness. I don’t know what darkness is but that word seems to descibe it best. Darkness leaves you feeling defeated, drained of joy, and empty inside. The funny thing about it is that the more you go into it the more you want it. It’s almost like a drug. Darkness always has a friend it brings along and the friend is called self pity. Oh poor me, how could this aweful thing happen to me?
Now the good news of the last two weeks is that the opportunity to choose LIGHT was always there. The LIGHT spoke to me in e-mails, phone calls, people who love me, and especially my children. When I chose the LIGHT everything around me became brighter. The birds sang sweeter, the grass looked greener, and the spark of LOVE flamed into a roaring fire.
It doesn’t matter how dark you think things are; the LIGHT is brighter. Choosing it can sometimes go against everything you feel because the darkness harkens, but we must all remember that the light is much, much, sweeter to live in. I don’t supose I will ever totally escape all the wiles of the darkness and maybe we should never even expect to do so, but one thing I am sure of is that weather I choose darkness or light, love will still hold me in its power and never let me go.
I want to thank all of you who have offered me your light during this difficult time. Some of you have known how dark it got and yet you never waivered in being the friends I needed you to be. I will get up tomorrow and once again choose light because it’s the only choice to make if you want to hear the birds sing.
Wait a minute, I think I just heard the sound of a song bird…………..got to go, I don’t want to miss that.
Cliff you sure bring light into many peoples hearts and mind I know for me you have brought a special light to my heart you have warmed my heart my times.
Cliff, God love brings joy and comfort to us all through others and we in turn share we others.
What awesome Father we have.
Love in Christ Dan
Hi cliff, One thing we can be sure of in this world is that the veil has been lifted from of our hearts and minds by the spirit of grace. This is a sure and stedfast hope we have. Jesus called it, “the kingdom within the heart”. Thank God his kingdom has come to reign within. The spirit of grace rules this kingdom cliff. Jesus said, I wil send you the comforter, thank God he did. He alone is the great teacher who continualy reminds us of the great work of redemption which christ did on behalf of the entire world. Darkness cannot reign in the heart and mind any longer when we see him dwelling within us all. Love dispells all darkness, for God is love.
This life holds much darkness cliff, we have all had our fare share of it, each one with a story to tell. Those days and times will continue to come when we suffer pain. But i’am continually reminded of what jesus said, be of good cheer i have overco me the world of pain and suffering for you.
This world is not the end cliff, because we see jesus. The one who overcame it all and entered within the veil and appeared in the presence of God our Father for us. As you said one time cliff, “let us learn to live life loved”. I remember when you said that, and it is so true. As jesus said also, “Love one another just as i have loved you”. Thankyou for the reminder of God our fathers beautiful creation all around us my friend. “I hear them birds today singing, I see the blue sky and the green grass and my fellow human beings who are loved beyond measure by our loving Father.”
Have a grace filled day my friend. You are living life loved. Its a nice place to be.
kenneth.
Cliff,
Thanks for the reminder that even when we choose darkness His love and embrace does NOT LEAVE us! I want you to know that whichever you choose I am your friend and brother. NOTHING you do can change that. You are FREE! And Freedom really looks good on you.
I love you brother!
Peace
Geo
“Closer To Fine” By the Indigo Girls
Dad, this song says soo much, but ultimately for me it says that the more I follow my heart the closer I am to fine. I know that hunger of darkness. I will be with you every step of the way, ALWAYS.
I’m trying to tell you something about my life
Maybe give me insight between black and white
The best thing you’ve ever done for me
Is to help me take my life less seriously, it’s only life after all
Well darkness has a hunger that’s insatiable
And lightness has a call that’s hard to hear
I wrap my fear around me like a blanket
I sailed my ship of safety till I sank it, I’m crawling on your shore.
I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain
There’s more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine.
I went to see the doctor of philosophy
With a poster of Rasputin and a beard down to his knee
He never did marry or see a B-grade movie
He graded my performance, he said he could see through me
I spent four years prostrate to the higher mind, got my paper
And I was free.
I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain
There’s more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine.
I stopped by the bar at 3 a.m.
To seek solace in a bottle or possibly a friend
I woke up with a headache like my head against a board
Twice as cloudy as I’d been the night before
I went in seeking clarity.
I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain
There’s more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine.
We go to the bible, we go through the workout
We read up on revival and we stand up for the lookout
There’s more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in a crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine
Mindy I love that song. I wanted to share the song “so small” by Carrie Underwood,every time I hear it I think of you ALL with a smile on my face.
What you got if you ain’t got love
The kind that you just want to give away
It’s ok to open up
Go ahead and let the light shine through
I know it’s hard on a rainy day
You wanna shut the world out and just be left alone
But don’t run out on your faith
Cause sometimes that mountain you’ve been climbing
Is just a grain of sand
And what you’ve been out there searching for forever
Is in your hands
And when you figure out love is all that matters after all
It sure makes everything else seem
So small
It’s so easy to get lost inside
A problem that seems so big at the time
It’s like a river that’s so wide it swallows you whole
While you’re sitting around thinking about what you can’t change
And worrying about all the wrong things
Time’s flying by, moving so fast
You better make it count cause you can’t get it back
Sometimes that mountain you’ve been climbing
Is just a grain of sand
And what you’ve been out there searching for forever
Is in your hands
Oh, and when you figure out love is all that matters after all
It sure makes everything else seem
So small
Sometimes that mountain you’ve been climbing
Is just a grain of sand
And what you’ve out there searching for forever
Is in your hands
And then you figure out love is all that matters after all
It sure makes everything else
Oh, it sure makes everything else seem
So small
Sarah,
You are such a blessing! I love you soo much. That songs is perfect and I will treasure that forever.
Many blessing to you and yours, Cliff
Thanks to all for sharing your light on this post. The songs are great……Isn’t music wonderful?
Cliff, I cannot tell you enough how THIS post got to ME today… I too seem to choose (or cannot escape the darkness of my own life)…. even knowing that all is/will be okay. I feel like a spiritual schizophrenic…. but I have to express my dark thoughts. You are blessed to have many friends to help hold you up! Shalom, Nancy
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-eoBtP_c_RKSRjsVpi2NFaAA8Pw–;_ylt=AmWSIIjJTwCzlvBdK4GbwKq0AOJ3?cq=1
Hi cliff &Nancy!
Beautiful thoughts… everyone!
Grace and peace to you and Nancy my friend. You are a beacon of Light to me.
I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t know that there are some wonderful people out in cyber space that basically do believe what I do.
I think “christian” women for so long have felt like they have to “look the part”, always be “joyful” and “praise the lord, hallelujah sister” and they have few opportunities to just let it all hang out, whether good or bad.
Well, “this sister” is getting to the point if I feel like saying “praise the Lord, and pass the ammunition”, that is what I am going to do.
Repressing things has hurt me for too long.
So, I guess I just want to let God make me into who HE wants me to be in HIS timing and I’ll just be ME, for better and for worse.
Shalom to all of you who have escaped the bondages of religion (for the most part anyway) and have a great weekend…
Read this thought it was worth sharing, written by an old Baptist preacher, who was also forced to resign from the pulpit.
Bitterness imprisons life; love releases it. Bitterness paralyzes life; love empowers it. Bitterness sours life; love sweetens it. Bitterness sickens life;
love heals it. Bitterness blinds life; love anoints its eyes.
Harry Emerson Fosdick
That’s good, Doug. Thanks!
Thinking back on my 35+ years under the influence of organized religion, I now see that I was bitter. I was bitter that I was forced to love a God who would send me to eternal torment if I didn’t. It didn’t make sense to me then, and it still doesn’t now. But, I had to pretend I understood, and put up an acceptable front. What a hypocrite I was. Who knows though… years from now, I might look back and say “what a hypocrite I was back in my ‘boldgrace’ days”! But, at least I can say I’m not bitter. Stupid maybe… for believing God is THAT loving!
Life is funny.