Scripture & the Arts: Finding Our Way in the DarkSample
Day 7: Making Darkness into Light
The 1der by Anomalous Day
Hope and Expectation
Although darkness surrounds us, God brings light. Count on it!
Isaiah 42 prophecies about the coming of Christ, God’s Messiah, the Servant of the Lord. The Servant of the Lord is a chosen one, filled with God's Spirit, known for His gentleness and perseverance, a light to the nations who will bring justice and salvation through Israel and to the ends of the earth.
Isaiah 42:16 is written in the voice of God Himself speaking promises of hope to us:
I will lead the blind by a way they do not know,
In paths they do not know I will guide them.
I will make darkness into light before them
And rugged places into plains.
These are the things I will do,
And I will not leave them undone.
Although we are “blind,” God promises to guide us safely down the path, around the roadblocks we can’t see. And then God goes further. He promises to empower us to see the things that trip us up, to turn darkness into light. And still more: He will also smooth out the rough places, bringing gentleness to a path now marked by hardship.
“These are the things I will do, and I will not leave them undone,” the verse concludes, a reassuring promise from our faithful God.
Although times have been hard, this Scripture says change is coming. Even amid uncertainty and difficulty, God’s people can trust God's guidance and unwavering faithfulness.
How does this Scripture speak to you today?
Where do you want God’s guidance, His light, or His help smoothing the path?
Stand in the Light
God invites us to receive His Chosen One, accept His help, open our eyes to His light, and walk the way that He smooths out for us. The chapter continues, inviting all people into hope, joy, and praise for God’s faithfulness and salvation.
In the title song from its debut album, The 1der, Anomalous Day notes that they want to “acknowledge the pain and suffering that we've experienced as a country [with a] video [that] includes powerful images of humanity at our best and worst.”
Anomalous Day declares, “We wanted this video to be honest about the pain and suffering that we feel within the human experience. Our video . . . reflects the gradient change (literally) from darkness to light.”
The song itself “is spoken from God’s perspective” and “challenges us to . . . remember that despite the harsh realities of life, God has asked us to believe . . . to hope . . . to seek out beauty and love and truth in the midst of this avowedly disconsolate season.”
The Light allows us to see brutal realities and still not “doubt that He is with us . . . and for us . . . and loves us.” Instead, we can also see the “wonder in it all.”
See the Wonder
Where in your life do you look for God’s guidance and faithfulness?
Can you see the “wonder”—and wonderfulness of God—amid “the harsh realities of life?”
Through the journey of this Plan, what has shifted in your understanding of the light of God?
We hope this Plan has encouraged you to receive and trust God’s light wherever you find darkness creeping into your life.
If you would like to explore more Scripture-based art and learn how artists express their faith in their art, spend some time in our online Gallery at https://engageart.org/gallery/.
Scripture
About this Plan
Stumbling, drowning, abandoned—if you ever feel this way, this is the Plan for you. God joins us in the pit and brings us, arm in arm, into clear light and fresh air. Each day includes Scriptures and artwork that meet us in the darkness and remind us of God’s promise of light.
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We would like to thank Engage Art for providing this plan. For more information, please visit: https://engageart.org