"Op-TEA-mistic" View of Growth

I form light and create darkness, I make well-being and create calamity, I am the Lord, who does all these things. (Isaiah 45:7,)

I could easily blog on lessons learned, or needed to be learned, by one who gardens with a brown thumb. But this entry is looking for the bright side of darkness. This entry is about the darkness that provides growth. A bit of darkness is required by some plants in order to flourish. The same could be said of the similarities found in the spiritual world. Often are biggest life lessons are learned in seasons of darkness.

Due to 35 years of tree growth since we first moved into our home, we have limited sunshine in our yard. Thus, the need for flowers that can actually grow in the dark corners of my beds.

Even last night's reading in 2 Timothy reminded me of the lessons the apostle Paul learned and shared from the darkness of a dark and dingy Roman prison. Yet, thousands of years later, those lessons speak to my heart as I prepare to teach on "seasons." Seasons of life, even those which include times of darkness and solitude.

Darkness in both life and a flower bed are ordained by our creator. My Lenten rose plant was a gift from Mimi and has proven both drought resistant and shade tolerant. Plus, it's a perennial! Even my coral bells (heychera) need the darkness provided by shade due to heat of Memphis summers. Sometimes shade can offer relief from the "heat" of life's circumstances as well as the outside temperature, which can exacerbate problems, both physical and spiritual. 

I think I'll put an ice cube in my "op-TEA-mistic" cuppa while I ponder more of the positive lessons that I can learn about darkness.

"op-Tea-mism"

Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing. (Isaiah 40:26, NIV)

Striving to continue my optimistic approach to darkness, God uniquely offered a little help. The Sunday comics. "The Family Circus" (CA,8/24) has had lots of good theology for me lately. Served right alongside my cuppa op-TEA-mism. 

Billy saw the beauty in the backdrop of darkness---because of his optimistic attitude.
Then he shared that optimism with his siblings!
"Know what? We have beautiful stars in our neighborhood." AMEN, Billy!

The life lessons continued at church as Lincoln Brewster's lyrics to  "God You Reign" scrolled across the big screen.

You paint the night, You count the starsAnd You call them by nameThe skies proclaim, God, You reign.

I love it when I'm at the beach, in the country at Full Circle Ranch....or just like Billy, on my own doorstep and I can look up at the dark sky and see all those stars which God determined and named. (Psalm 147:4)

Darkness proclaims God.

Tonight I'm gonna take my cuppa op-TEA-mism out and see for myself.

"Positivi-TEA"

I create the light and make the darkness. I send good times and bad times. I, the LORD, am the one who does these things. (Isaiah 45:7, NLT)

Positivi-TEA. Sounds like a made up word to me. But....I knew that I had spent enough time on the negativi-TEA of darkness so a check with Merriam Webster showed that positivity is indeed a word.

Actually, it was an email last night from my son-in-law which reminded me of Corey's surety that God uses darkness. He began with his memories of night-watch comfort words from his dad and then went "fast forward" to the memory of hearing a radio pastor speaking on WCRV/Bott Radio about darkness being a result of the absence of light. Then Corey concluded with some physical "uses" of the dark.

"I am sure The Lord has alot of reasons for darkness,...rest, cooling the earth and vegetation or to see His heavenly handy work." Corey even ended his email with Isaiah 60:20, and this comment, "a great verse that speaks about the two great lights, greater and lesser and how they won't be needed anymore because He is sufficient."

Those "dark affirming" reminders had me thinking of the importance of embracing darkness as from God's hand and to look for it in a more positive light. Certainly the darkness of the night sky provides the perfect backdrop to showcase the splendor of His "starry" creation.

Then, a scripture search offered a little more light on darkness....and I loved it!

And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was. (Exodus 20:21)

עֲרָפֶל, the Hebrew word for that thick darkness is araphel: cloud, heavy cloud. But it was there in that dark cloud that the Presence of God dwelt. God in the darkness!

Darkness is as sure a sign of God's Presence as is the brilliance of His glory.

My cuppa positivi-TEA was all the sweeter when combined with "collects" (prayers) from my Common Book of Prayer and night prayer, compline 133, " Look down, O Lord, from your heavenly throne and illumine this night with your celestial brightness,"

My cuppa didn't allow much light but I appreciated the rich darkness of both the tea and its translucent container. A step toward positivi-TEA.

"luminosi-TEA"

even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you. (Psalm 139:12, NIV)

Don’t be fooled by the luminosi-TEA title. This entry is really about darkness.

Mother would always tell us that we had to be home by dark. That meant we were virtually free to roam the neighborhood until then---an activity unheard of these days. But…because of her admonition, it was easy to assume that bad things loomed and lurked in darkness.

Even as an adult, the darkness that sometimes penetrates my insides seems to get worse as darkness falls outside. Fears become like giants in a kid’s book, attracting and growing more darkness. Like a large shadowy magnet.

Lately I’ve needed words for friends who are in dark places where I’ve never been. So dark, that just quoting scripture would sound platitudinous, if there’s such a word.

• I know nothing about the darkness of living in a war zone as Liza described in her morning email. 
• I can only imagine how scary the place is for a friend whose spouse has had not only a sudden and alarming diagnosis but a gloomy prognosis as well.
• Darkness of job-related worries of several friends; concerns that I can't fathom. 
• I have not experienced the day in and day out darkness of living with chronic pain as the situation of blog friend in AR. 
• Nor have I lived with the fears induced by physical blindness as has a friend just around the corner.
• My heart aches for a dear friend dealing with a BIG potential problem---the fear of it has left me without words.

These are dark places being experienced this very day in the hearts of believers whom I know.

I know that the Light of the Lord is there in all these situations….but that doesn’t negate the existence of those dark places.

……. in your light we see light. (Psalm 36:9)

As Dolly explained to P.J---"the sun is there, it's just behind all the dark."
(Commercial Appeal Comics 8/16/14), 

I want to serve them a cuppa luminosi-TEA so that they have strength and hope in the midst of fear and trouble----knowing that they are not alone, as God's all seeing eyes can penetrate even the darkness!