If you’re not experiencing the goodness of God, it’s because you keep turning … not Him.
The sun shines. Even when you can’t see it, it keeps shining. On the other side of those clouds? It is shining. Stuck in a dark cave? That sun keeps shining. At night, when all seems dark and a dismal and you wonder if you ever see the sun again … wait. The sun will rise. But realistically, the sun never moved. It never stopped shining. It was the earth that moved.
2000 years ago, the half-brother of Jesus wrote a powerful truth …
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
James 1.17
Don’t miss this. The imagery is the celestial lights, burning orbs of gaseous brightness in the sky that shine down on us. And when you look at the brightest light shining on earth, we imagine the sun. Warmth. Illumination. Revealing. Life giving.
He is the Father of lights. One who gave them. Over them. Keeps them burning. He is the light.
And there is no variation. The sun doesn’t move. No variation. And God is just like that. He stays the same. He keeps shining. Never changes. He is the same yesterday – today – and forever.
Feeling the rain? He shines.
Experiencing shadows all around? He shines.
And here is where my brain kicked my butt. When I have those dark times, when I’m feeling the depth of night, when I focus on the coldness and the uncertainty, it’s not because the light stopped shining on me, it’s not because the light moved …. it’s because I moved, I turned away from the sun’s light and moved into the darkness.
I can’t blame the sun. I can’t blame the clouds or the cave or the person blocking the sun or the circumstances distracting me … they didn’t stop the sun. The sun still shines.
God’s goodness is still there. His grace is still being poured out. His love never fails, never stops, and never gives up. So if I’m in darkness, it’s most likely me.
I keep turning my way, worrying about things He’s already promised to handle – slipping into habits I know I shouldn’t be doing – ignoring the disciplines I need to practice – and doing things my way … not His.
If you’re not experiencing the goodness of God, it’s because you keep turning … not Him.
So what do we do? Sometimes all we need to do is wait. Wait on the Lord. Sorrow may last for the night, but joy comes in the morning. The earth keeps moving and will return to the light. Just wait. Sometimes we need to turn, walk away from things that block us from the light. And sometimes we just need to open our eyes. We are already in the light, we’ve just closed our eyes and mind to that. Wake up to the truth.
The Light still shines.
Muddy Shoes by Todd 
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