Issue link: http://denverseminary.uberflip.com/i/1433252
31 DECEMBER BRINGING LIGHT INTO DARKNESS O come, O Bright and Morning Star, And bring us comfort from afar! Dispel the shadows of the night And turn our darkness into light. Psalm 139:7-12 A brief look at the news is enough to realize that there is much darkness in our sinful world. Prime examples of our deprived human state are the testimonies of victims who have come forward as par t of the #metoo and #churchtoo movements. Cer tainly, shadows and darkness are ver y evident in my counseling work with adult sur vivors of child abuse. Darkness in Scripture is often equated with evil and wickedness (e.g., Job 30:26, 34:22; Proverbs 4:19; John 3:19; 2 Corinthians 6:14) and perpetration of abuse against children is undeniably evil. Unfor tunately, the consequences of such dark acts may linger for decades in the lives of sur vivors, casting a shadow over many aspects of their lives. The ongoing darkness can take the form of post-traumatic symptoms (e.g., flashbacks, nightmares), self-hatred, shame, depression, addictions, identity issues, and relational deficits (to name a few). Sometimes the darkness is so deep that victims become perpetrators themselves in a horrific cycle of generational abuse. Verse 6 of O Come O, Come Immanuel echoes my hear t's cr y, and the desperate pleas of my complex trauma clients. "Bring us comfor t!" because there is no real hope apar t from you, God. "Dispel the shadows" that result from the acts of sinful men and women. Only you, Lord, "can turn our darkness into light" because our own effor ts fail. But there is good news! Christ, the "Bright and Morning Star," was born, lived, died, rose from the dead, and is coming again to do just that! As John 12:46 states, "I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." Even as we impatiently wait for Christ to dispel the darkness permanently, we can rejoice that He brings light into our lives and circumstances even now. Come Lord Jesus, quickly come. Heather Davediuk Gingrich, PhD, Professor of Counseling O Come, O Come Immanuel John Mason Neale (1861)