The elevator had only two stops on it, ‘up’ and ‘down’. Since we were ‘up’ it had only one way to go, down. And down we went. In a matter of seconds, we had descended to the bottom. When the elevator came to a stop, the interior door opened, then the exterior door. Stepping out, I entered a strange new world hundreds of feet below the surface of the earth. Standing in a deep coalmine, a blast of cold, moist air hit me.
After passing a safety course on the surface, underground I was weighted down with all of my safety equipment; heavy water proof boots, emergency oxygen canister and a battery pack attached to a safety belt and harness, thick gloves and a company coat covering multiple layers of clothing. With my hardhat on, I quickly switched on my light. Stepping out of the elevator, I felt like Neil Armstrong, ready to declare, “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”. However, I restrained myself. To me, walking on the floor of the mine was as foreign and alien a world as walking on the moon. But, for the man leading me, this was not a strange world, but a very familiar, comfortable place.
I enjoy seeing where members of my church work. This day I was with Bill Benline, one of my Elders who is the General Mine Foreman of the American Energy Corporation’s Century Coalmine. Located outside of Powhatan Point, this mine is an independent operating subsidiary of Murray Energy Corporation.
Hundreds of feet below the surface, Bill began showing me around. We walked a short distance from the elevator to his battery powered golf cart to begin the seven-mile trip to the area where the men were mining the coal. Riding the golf cart on top of the rails made the trip bumpy, but much faster than walking. Ribs lined the way with cutouts pealing off every 1000 yards. Safety markers and signs were everywhere. And so was the darkness. The darkness was thick. It seemed to swallow up every bit of light.
Underground can be a confusing, dark world. However, I think more often than not, we live and work in a darker world than the world in which the coal miners work. Too often we choose to live in a dark world. Even when the sun is shining brightly above us, it seems we stumble around in the darkness. We live in the darkness of fear. We live in a world empty of grace, void of forgiveness, where love is vacant and hope is missing. We live in a world where we forget that the promised Messiah came chasing away the darkness of sin and allowing us to live in the new light of joy. Sometimes we forget that Isaiah prophesied and promised that the Messiah would come, dispelling the darkness of sin. Isaiah declared, “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light, on those living in the land of the shadow of death, a light has dawned.” (Isaiah 9:2)
Jesus came. Jesus fulfilled the waiting promise. Jesus is the light Isaiah prophesied. Jesus is giving us the light of grace, giving us joy. Jesus is our light shining in the dark world of sin and rejection.
With the season of Advent and Christmas approaching, we see Christmas lights coming on just as it’s getting dark outside. We place candles in the windows; bright lights decorate our Christmas trees. Light displays cover our shrubs and decorate our houses. Everything is wrapped in light. These lights, dispelling the darkness of winter, are also a powerful Christian symbol reminding us that Jesus is the light of the world. When we switch on our Christmas lights or drive past light displays, we remember that just as these holiday lights illumine the darkness around us, Jesus is illuminating our lives.
Walking through the coalmine I met brave coalminers who daily work in a dark and dangerous world hundreds of feet below the earth’s surface, with the rock ceiling, just a few feet above their heads, held in place by a network of steel fencing. Darkness is all around them. Yet they live and work in light. Each worker is bathed in the light of his fellow workers. And so they are never in darkness. This Advent season, remember Jesus is the light of the world. No longer do we have to live in the darkness of our past mistakes or sins. No longer are we burdened by guilt or weighted down with heavy burdens. Now we are forgiven! This Advent season, remember Jesus words, telling us that we “are the light of the world.” (Matt. 5:14) Not only during Advent, but everyday remember to be a light for someone else. Show forgiveness. Extend mercy. Offer hope. Bring joy. Let Jesus’ light shine on you, in you and through you.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
DO NOT BEAFRIAD
“Do not be afraid. . .” These were the first words Zechariah heard as he stood alone in the Temple. A huge change was coming in his life and the angel of the Lord said, “Do not be afraid.” “Do not be afraid. . .” These were the first words Mary heard when the Angel Gabriel came to her. “Do not be afraid. . .” These were the first words Joseph heard during a dream he had about his fiancée, Mary. “Do not be afraid. . .” These were the first words Abram heard and later, the very same words his wife, Sarai heard. All through the Bible we hear messengers from GOD saying, “Do not be afraid. . .” And we see that when they trusted in GOD and in His messengers, there was really no reason for fear. But, even though we have their example to live by, we live in fear. We fear failure. We fear rejection. We fear being wrong. We fear being embarrassed. We even fear success. We fear doing something new and different. So too often we do not attempt anything new.
Perhaps Jacob felt this way. In the midst of his concerns and frustrations, Jacob heard GOD speaking to him, comforting him with the words, “Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt . . .” Those were the first words Jacob heard that night when he camped at Beersheba. The message from GOD to Jacob and to every one else in the Bible comes in two parts: first there is the message of hope, ‘do not fear’, which is always followed by an assurance, declaring why the person has no reason for being afraid. For Jacob, the second part of the assurance from GOD stated: “. . . for I will go down to Egypt with you, and I will surely bring you back again.” These were GOD’s words of promise to Jacob, words which became a promise fulfilled. For GOD did as HE promised. GOD went with Jacob to Egypt and brought him back safely.
Like Jacob, we too fear going to new places. Sometimes we fear striking out on our own. In the Gospel of Mark the word ‘stay’ does not exist in the ancient Greek text. The word ‘remain’ can be found only twice. Both of these times the word refers to remaining silent; not to remaining in one place. To counter the absence of ‘stay’, the word ‘go’ is used by Jesus 27 times and the word to ‘come’ is used 61 times!
In our church there are two young women who have heard Jesus say, ‘Go!’ And they are going. These two women, one of whom is my middle daughter, Rachel, are going without fear, although I’m not sure the same can be send of their parents! Like Jacob from the Bible, they also heard the messenger of GOD saying, “Do not be afraid.” And, without fear, knowing that GOD is going with them, they are going. They are leaving our Valley for an unknown world, the Dominican Republic, where they will work as short-term Mission Volunteers with Orphanage Outreach. In the Dominican Republic, in the village of Monte Cristi, they will work and live with the very poor and the forgotten, orphaned children. Leaving everything familiar behind, like language and food, customs and culture, they are fulfilling what Jesus said, when HE instructed all of us to “Go!”
“Go!” Jesus said. Most of the time we take this command as these two women did, and we physically get up and go somewhere. Most of the time I think this is true. However, sometimes the idea of going is not to take a physical trip, as much as going on a spiritual journey. Sometimes the idea of going is to go into the future, which can be just as frightening as going to a far-off land. As we begin a new year, we are going into the future. A brand new year has opened before us. No one, not one of us has ever stepped into February 4, 2009 before. We really do not know what it holds for us. The unknown is always a little scary. It is a little frightening to go where we have never been before. Nevertheless, we all have the promise from Jesus assuring each of us, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” With a promise like that, what more can we ask for as we begin a new year together?
Perhaps Jacob felt this way. In the midst of his concerns and frustrations, Jacob heard GOD speaking to him, comforting him with the words, “Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt . . .” Those were the first words Jacob heard that night when he camped at Beersheba. The message from GOD to Jacob and to every one else in the Bible comes in two parts: first there is the message of hope, ‘do not fear’, which is always followed by an assurance, declaring why the person has no reason for being afraid. For Jacob, the second part of the assurance from GOD stated: “. . . for I will go down to Egypt with you, and I will surely bring you back again.” These were GOD’s words of promise to Jacob, words which became a promise fulfilled. For GOD did as HE promised. GOD went with Jacob to Egypt and brought him back safely.
Like Jacob, we too fear going to new places. Sometimes we fear striking out on our own. In the Gospel of Mark the word ‘stay’ does not exist in the ancient Greek text. The word ‘remain’ can be found only twice. Both of these times the word refers to remaining silent; not to remaining in one place. To counter the absence of ‘stay’, the word ‘go’ is used by Jesus 27 times and the word to ‘come’ is used 61 times!
In our church there are two young women who have heard Jesus say, ‘Go!’ And they are going. These two women, one of whom is my middle daughter, Rachel, are going without fear, although I’m not sure the same can be send of their parents! Like Jacob from the Bible, they also heard the messenger of GOD saying, “Do not be afraid.” And, without fear, knowing that GOD is going with them, they are going. They are leaving our Valley for an unknown world, the Dominican Republic, where they will work as short-term Mission Volunteers with Orphanage Outreach. In the Dominican Republic, in the village of Monte Cristi, they will work and live with the very poor and the forgotten, orphaned children. Leaving everything familiar behind, like language and food, customs and culture, they are fulfilling what Jesus said, when HE instructed all of us to “Go!”
“Go!” Jesus said. Most of the time we take this command as these two women did, and we physically get up and go somewhere. Most of the time I think this is true. However, sometimes the idea of going is not to take a physical trip, as much as going on a spiritual journey. Sometimes the idea of going is to go into the future, which can be just as frightening as going to a far-off land. As we begin a new year, we are going into the future. A brand new year has opened before us. No one, not one of us has ever stepped into February 4, 2009 before. We really do not know what it holds for us. The unknown is always a little scary. It is a little frightening to go where we have never been before. Nevertheless, we all have the promise from Jesus assuring each of us, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” With a promise like that, what more can we ask for as we begin a new year together?
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