My husband and I, along with our children, lived in Holland for four years, doing ministry with Dutch-Indonesian people. We had only been in Holland for seven months when our third son, Teddy, was born. During our first summer in Holland, we took a trip to Austria as a short get-away. The country is so beautiful and the mountains are majestic. We really didn’t do a lot of planning, but just explored things as we came to them on our drive. One of the mountains advertised a gondola ride to the top of the mountain and the opportunity to explore an ice cave.
Gondolas are not my favorite things; I don’t like heights. But I’m still around so it’s evident we got there and back safely. We got tickets and entered the cave with our guide and some other tourists, speaking several different languages. It was very dark inside the cave, but there were some lights lining the pathway which immediately began a descent. Teddy was about a year old so I was carrying him. He obviously did not like being inside the cave as he started crying. The people in front of me began to make remarks. I don’t understand very much German, and at that point I was not too proficient in Dutch, but I understood enough to understand that these people were speaking German and they were making remarks about a crazy American bringing a baby inside the ice cave.
I tried to hush Teddy, but he just kept crying, and the remarks kept flying, so I decided to turn around and go back. There were enough lights along the path that I could see where to step, and I finally made it back to the entryway. The door to the entryway was closed and locked!! I immediately panicked. I pounded on the door thinking someone outside would hear me. Nothing!! I had no idea what I was going to do. The entryway was small and there was no place to sit. When my continued pounding brought no results, I started looking around in the gloom, with a crying baby. Finally, on a ledge, I saw a key!! My relief was overwhelming. I opened the door with the key, placed it back on the ledge and made my way down to the lodge. I found a seat outside on the covered porch, and comforted my crying child. Within moments he was sound asleep. My husband and two older boys finished the tour and found me sitting there with Teddy.
Darkness in Scripture speaks of sin and a sinful life. It is described as being hopelessly confused, minds full of darkness, hard hearts, no sense of shame, having a desire for self-gratification, and quick to practice all types of impurity. It’s like being in a dark, ice cave with no sense of direction. God has called us out of darkness into His light. In fact, we are called “children of light.” As such he urges us to let our light shine so people can see our good works and glorify our Father in heaven.
The attributes of someone walking in the light are the direct opposite of someone walking in darkness. We are to be kind, tenderhearted, forgiving one another. 1 Peter 2:9 says, “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”
We don’t have to panic like I did in that small, dark entryway. The key to walking in the light is as close as the pages of our Bible. Pick it up, open the door and step into his wonderful light.
Naomi Brinkman
