Mark 4:26-27 – Jesus said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how.”
Expectant eyes watched and eager ears listened as Pastor Ed Gungor began to speak to the interns. During his time here, he spoke to us about what he phrased, "The Dark Night of the Soul". He explained that this is a “wilderness” time during your life when your soul cannot grasp what is going on. A time when you go through the motions and monotony of life and generally feel a deep void in your heart. It can cause you to question the depth of your dreams or even your relationship with Jesus. He compared this time to winter. For a while it appears lifeless and dismal, but in reality true growth is being stored up and developed. The hidden strength of winter is that it sets you up for spring. It is during the winter when the roots of a tree grow to create the foundation for the next season of life. Just like the tree, we go through similar times where God is trying to make you grow up a little and exercise your faith. My sister, Christa, once told me that in order to fully follow after God, you must be willing to have these kinds of days, because worshiping and loving God is not about a feeling or hype, it’s about relationship and commitment.
Pastor Ed reminded us that faith is not an easy thing and that growing up requires wrestling with yourself. This message has meant a lot to me because I had been personally struggling with wondering where God was in my life. I later realized it's because God wants me to fully believe in Him and not rely on "feeling" His presence. He desires for us all to continue to follow after Him even if we were to know that we would never feel His presence another day in our lives.
God loves us and He is diligent to watch over the process of our lives. Maybe you feel like you are in a winter season of your life. Allow yourself to overcome this time and be ready to embrace the life that will come, as you fully trust the God that is shaping you.
"Only in a dimension where faith is difficult, could faith be faith."
Written by Joy Wimer, Go Intern.
