Hope in the Darkness
On that day: The deaf will hear the words of a scroll and, freed from dimness and darkness, the eyes of the blind will see. The poor will again find joy in the Lord, and the neediest of people will rejoice in the holy one of Israel. Is 29:18-19
In the book There are Sermons in Stories, by William L Stidger, the author tells about the first time he met Helen Keller; It was at a Chautauqua lecture. Earlier, she had learned to speak audibly, so, although she was deaf and blind, she delivered a speech to those assembled. At the close, there was a thunderous round of applause, and Helen joined in the clapping with joyful exuberance.
It was evident that Miss Keller had somehow perceived the audience’s enthusiasm. So after the applause died down, the chairman of the meeting asked her, through Ann Sullivan, who always accompanied her how she was able to sense the applause when she could neither hear nor see.
“Through the vibrations in my feet,” Helen explained.
Someone then asked her what her favorite book was, and she fairly shouted, ” The Bible! It is the most wonderful book in the world.”
In response to the question why the Bible meant so much to her, she replied, “It is because, in my darkness, the Bible makes me see the Great Light!”
In Isaiah 9:2 the prophet says that “the people who walk in darkness shall see a great Light – a Light that will shine on all those who live in the land of the shadow of death.” The darkness Isaiah is talking about is spiritual darkness, and the great Light is none other than Jesus, who declared Himself to be the Light of the world (see John 9:5)
As Christian, it is our privilege to be the reflectors of this Light to the world, no matter what our vocation may be.