It was one of those December mornings that only a man of the mountains can appreciate. The temperature was hovering around 5 below and there wasn’t the smallest sliver of a moon to be seen in the vast Montana sky. There was such stillness in the air that the shattering sound of a bull elk bugling on the other side of the mountain seemed to be coming from just across the creek not 50 yards away. Fresh breath hung in the air like smoke from the slowly waking stove in the tent. As it slowly rose toward the star filled sky it only seemed to accentuate the presence of complete silence. The slow walk to the picket line to get the horses was punctuated by the crunch of fresh fallen snow under foot. Each step seemed to shatter the silence, almost as if it was unwelcome in the pristine morning stillness. Even the horses seemed almost reverent as they waited for the trip down to the creek for water and the fresh hay and oats to fuel them for the arduous trip ahead. It was at times like these that the whole world seemed at peace … that it had just been created for him.
His breath startled him as it tried to freeze in his nostrils and he lowered his face and pulled the wool scarf a little higher. The cold brought his mind back to the present, away from the warmth of his bedroll where he had been just a brief hour earlier. Now here he was on his favorite buckskin mountain pony engulfed in the frozen darkness. Both had been fed and watered and were now facing the challenge ahead; the cold and blackness of early morning. It was a mountain trail so dark that the only visible light came from the sparks off the horses’ shoes as they struck the rocks and ice on that narrow trail.
He looked ahead at his companion who was leading the way with two pack horses, the small light shining down from his hat band onto the trail ahead. He wondered if the lead horse really needed the light or if it was just a comfort for the riders against the pressing darkness. It gave him little comfort as he knew the higher they climbed the deeper the canyon off to his right became. Faith, he mused, was certainly a relative thing and at that very moment his was in the slow and steady movement coming from under the saddle. It didn’t bring much relief to think that his trusted friend had 4 legs to break compared to his 2. Yes, faith seemed to be a choice, one that you made or one that was made for you. Everybody believes in something — whether they admit it or not.
As the trail began to wander deeper into the pines what little light there was from the stars overhead completely disappeared. The only light was that little beam from his companion up ahead. It seemed to be completely useless against the encompassing darkness. It was only illuminating the trail a mere 3 or 4 feet in front of the horses. It stood in sharp contrast to the darkness as did the horses hoofs against the silence. He wondered where they were.
Many times in life we face this same situation. We know the general direction but the trail we’re on at the moment seems shrouded in darkness. How are we going to get to our destination if we don’t know where we are at the moment? It’s at times like these that LOST takes on a whole new meaning. That’s when it’s important to turn on that little lamp that shines on the trail just far enough ahead to show you where to take your next step.
Ps 119:105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. KJV
I frequently come to this verse when my trail seems dark and lonely. When there is stillness and I find myself lost amongst the trees of life, where all direction seems to be the same without the moon or stars to illuminate the trail. These are the times when the Lord reminds me that His Word is both a lamp and a light.
Before leaving the tent on that cold morning the map had been gone over many times and the destination was clearly identified. The trail was there and had been carefully marked. The picture of where he was going and how to get there was obvious to see. But once on that dark trail the clear markers noted on the map were invisible. Just like our walk with the Lord seems to be at times.
In verse 105(a) the psalmist tells us that first the Word of God is like a lamp. The Hebrew word for lamp is niyr, and refers to a small burner or candle. It is only going to light the limited area around your feet. That place where you are in life at that very moment. Like the small flashlight shining over the lead horse’s head it shows you where to put your next step to keep you on the trail. Contrast this with 105(b) where the Word is described as a light.
The word owr, or light in Hebrew, means clear and bright like the morning sun. It is the light of the Word that shows us the big picture. Looking at the whole map in the tent before departing on the trail is like that. God will show us where we are going in the bright light of His Word. When we seek Him regarding our calling in life He is always faithful to give us a glimpse of it in His Word. He will show us the goal ahead but, just like the map, He doesn’t show us every detail of the path. That can only be seen once we are on the trail. Perhaps the reason is that we might not go down that trail if we knew everything ahead of time … we might get stuck in one spot!
The caution here is to not depend upon the light alone but to use the lamp. If we depend on the light we are going to get lost along the way, as it doesn’t show us where we are on the trail. Only the lamp shows us where we are at the moment. God knows that we need both and it is up to us to learn how to use them.
Think about Abraham for a moment. God showed him the light:
Gen 12:1-3 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: 2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: 3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
God gave Abraham His vision by first shining His light on the big picture. And Abraham’s reaction is an example for us to follow:
Gen 12:4 So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him …
As Abraham set out we follow his journey in Genesis and see how God continually spoke to him along the way and used His Word as a light to freshen the vision:
Gen 12:7 And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.
Gen 13:14-17 And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: 15 For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. 16 And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered. 17 Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee.
Gen 15:4-5 And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. 5 And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.
It is imperative that we have the vision ever before us, and God will ensure that He shines His Word as a light so that we don’t lose it. Remember the wise words of Solomon:
Prov 29:18 Where there is no vision the people perish but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.
Stay in the Word and your vision will ever be clearly before you. Just like He encouraged Abraham throughout his journey He will encourage us just when we need it. But just as important are the directions we need along the way. Those horses had to read that trail in the darkness one step at a time to keep from falling into the canyon, and it is no less perilous for us as we walk through this world on our way to God’s promises. Let’s take just look at one of the many examples in which God used His Word as a lamp unto Abraham’s feet.
When Abraham seemed about to attain the goal God had set before him he got some direction that changed not only his life but also the lives of many that followed. We are all familiar with the drama surrounding God’s command (it wasn’t a request) to Abraham to sacrifice his promised son of promise; Isaac. We have probably heard the account presented in many ways and have examined all of the significant details surrounding that event. But let’s just take a brief moment and step into Abraham’s shoes.
Gen 22:2 And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.
God had shown His light and Abraham was in the process of enjoying the fruit of that promise. The promise God had made so many years earlier was there at his side every day. He could see it, touch it and rejoice in it. Then, all of a sudden he is surrounded with darkness and the path doesn’t seem clear; it didn’t make sense. Give up the very thing which God had promised him all these years?
The most important thing Abraham did was to do what he had always done; he obeyed:
Gen 22:3 And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him.
As he started up his cold, icy mountain trail He trusted God to give him the direction he needed along the way even though that trail was the darkest he had traveled in his 100+ years. He not only had a huge sacrifice to make, he had to depend on God to show him where it was to be done. But he didn’t waver in his trust of God. He had been down many trails with the Lord during his life and had seen God’s hand revealed many times as a lamp unto his feet. We can see his confidence in God’s promises when he addressed the two young men he had taken along with him:
Gen 22:5 And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you,
He took God’s direction for that dark moment in his life but he never lost sight of the light that God had given him. He spoke with unfaltering faith when he said that both he and Isaac would return. God would supply his every need just as He had in the past … even if that meant raising Isaac from the dead.
Are you at one of those places in the trail of your life where it is cold and dark? It seems as if God has stopped talking to you and the cold is numbing your soul. The glow of His light is in your heart and you are holding the promise tightly but the present hour is dark and you can’t see anything. That’s when, like Abraham, we need to turn to the lamp that will minister to us right where we are.
The Word of God represents many things in the life of a Christian but nothing more important than the fact that it IS His Word. It’s for the here and now – for this very moment. It is truth and it is life for every situation we encounter. Just when you think you are going over the side into the blackness that little lamp shows you where to step next. You never need fear the unseen when traveling in the darkness because His lamp will never go out. It will always reveal your path and keep you in perfect peace on your journey. Even in those times when the darkness is closing in and all seems lost. As we wound our way up that mountain trail we finally reached the high meadow just as the sun was beginning to dawn on another day. As we paused to rest our horses I turned in the saddle to gaze back down the trail we had just traversed. My lungs filled with the freezing air as I gasped. What played out before my eyes was a picture of the steepest, narrowest, rock strewn, iciest trail I had ever seen. I couldn’t believe we came that way – in the dark no less. The sheer drop off made my legs weak! I looked down at the gentle animal underneath me and thought long and hard about faith.
That icy trail was like many interludes in my life. They have all been different and I’ve gotten lost during some of them. But no matter how long I waited to turn to my lamp it never failed to illuminate the trail for me. It was during those cold and lonely times on the trail that I learned to press into His Word until the pathway became clear. Sometimes I have to wait in the darkness for the lamp to pierce the darkness but it always does. It’s during those times of waiting and searching His Word that I comfort myself with what His light has already shown me.
Lam 3:21-26 This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. 22 It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. 23 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. 24 The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. 25 The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. 26 It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD. KJV
The light reflects the whole counsel of God’s Word and the lamp illuminates the very spot where you are with the Word for the moment. We need them both if we are going to successfully complete our walk through this world. We just need to remember that at the end of the dark, icy trail there is always a sunrise to sooth and warm the soul. There is always a time to look back down the trail and reflect. Perhaps it’s just as well I didn’t see what was surrounding me on that steep mountain trail!
There is a reason God refers to His Word as daily bread. Just like there was just enough manna for one day, so there is all we need for today. Oh how long it has taken me to take the words of Jesus to heart. But what a joy it is to trust in them and act on them:
Matt 6:34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
What wonderful advice. Yesterday is gone and you can’t change it and tomorrow isn’t here yet. That lamp is for today, for where you are right now. The Lord once told me that I had a great handle on using the light to see far down the road, but I failed to use the lamp and that is why I kept tripping on the issues at hand.
Put your faith in the light and the lamp – batteries “are” included!