In ancient European monks walked dark corridors with candles on the toes of their shoes, giving them just enough light to see the next step. That is how God leads us.
Educator Verdell Davis’s faith was challenged when a plane crash killed her husband of thirty years. Facing a mountain of letters, insurance forms and bills, she spread them on the table and threw a sheet over them. ‘Out of sight, out of mind,’ she thought. She writes: ‘I know the monster under the sheet is going to attack me if I didn’t attack it first. I sat down and cried tears of anger, frustration and loneliness. Eventually I raised my head and said, ‘Okay, Lord. I am a fairly bright girl. I am going to open one envelope. If I can make sense of what is inside I will open another. If not, I am putting this sheet back and going back to bed. Even that bit of levity was a little extra light for that particular step. Back then I wanted to already know how to take care of all the details and feel confident about the monumental daily decision I had to make and have some clue that the steps in front of me were surmountable. I wanted the path flooded with light. Yet, it was with small flickers of candle glow that God gently reminded me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness’ (2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV). The Psalmist said, ‘Blessed are those who have learned to walk in the light of your presence’ (Psalm 89:15 NIV). I only needed light for one envelope, one conversation, one decision and one step at a time. So do you.
