OUR DAY BEGINS AT MIDNIGHT

AND THERE WAS EVENING AND THEN THERE WAS MORNING; ONE DAY.(see Genesis 1:5).

So I am learning that the day begins with the evening and darkness come before the dawn.  The word says, "Joy comes in the morning." meaning that joy comes after the darkness.  It's getting through to the morning that is the hard part. Some night seasons are long indeed!

The dark-night-of-the-soul is a term used when we go through the greatest darkness and testing of our lives.
I remember my mother saying, "It gets the darkest just before the sun comes up".  I had no idea what on earth she was talking about. It sounded pretty dumb to me when I was young, but now that I have gone through a dark season in my life and suddenly it made sense to me.  It did get extremely dark before I saw a glimer of hope.  We had lost everything, from a home to belongings and now I was evicted from an old farm house we were renting.  Now I had to move again. My husband [now ex] walked out on me, my sister suddenly died; my mother got alzhiemers and she had no idea I was her daughter. I lost my job and had to part my way with some dear friends.  Everything was messed up in my life and it really was a dark time.  I had never felt so lost, abandoned and I felt all alone. This began in December 1996 and ended about the end of March 1997- It was a rough three or four months and it felt like a lifetime. When I came out of that season it was like a new start in my life; everything was different and it took some getting use to.  It was like getting use to light after being in a dark dungeon for months.  I felt so tested and tried in all my core values and beliefs.  I was surprised and relieved I did not walk away from my faith in the Lord  - there were days when I thought I would.  Everything was just too hard and too much to handle.  Now, everything was new.  A new day, a new life, a new vision, new hope and even my faith was made new and alive.  I made it through!

Our Day Starts At Midnight!

God gave me a word and spoke to me this week in my devotions that 'I' was now in a NEW DAY and that is was TIME to go forth into my destiny.

Time is what was needed in order to test my faith and purify my heart.  It could not happen easy or quickly. There was lots I had to understand and process in the midst of all that darkness.

 

The darkness needed to be sorted out and I had to assess what was important in life. I had some major decisions to make.  I was desperate for the light. I have had enough darkness. The wilderness that I came out of seemed so void of His presence but looking back now I realize He was with me the whole time. I remember the days where it felt I was groping in the darkness - feeling my way through and looking for meaning and purpose in everything in my life; so much had changed.  Now I needed meaning as I was so dry and baren.  I needed refreshment and water - the wilderness is a dry place.  The wilderness I learned was to keep me thirsty for Him.  I had pain that I had never experienced  before in my life. The emotional pain left a huge hole in me and it was like a void waiting to be filled.  Yes, it was dark - a very, very dark place that I was in and I had never felt so abandoned, rejected and lonely as I did then. The soul pain was great. God birthed a lot of compassion and wisdom in me during those years; I didn't know it then, but I see it now, and see it manifested in my life. My faith was indeed tested and tried. I had a friend, a spiritual mother, who prayed me through it as she was so concerned that I would return to Egypt, it was that painful.  The trial was producing 'endurance' in me to finish the course and lean on Him and not my flesh and my understanding.  Only He could get
me through the wilderness.  I didn't find my way out, but I found HIM in right in the middle of the darkness!  I collapsed in His arms and He led me out of the deep wilderness that I was lost in. 

The trials in my life are used to conform me to the image of Christ and to produce the fruit of His spirit.  What you like about me is what the Lord has done in my life; what you don't like about me?  --- well--- God is still working on me!  The trials in my life also bring me into a place of maturity where He can trust me with more authority to do the works that He did. That authority is to be used along with the Gifts of the Spirit.  Trust was another trial.  The testing of my own authority was another test to take.  And the  Dark-Night-Of-My-Soul?  Well, it led me to the Dawn's Light. 

1 Corinthians 10:13


Carried out of the Darkness



He comes into the darkness and carries us through!

It doesn't matter how dark it gets, the light will come.

it's a new day and it begins at midnight!