The Life of a Simzy

Menacing Blackness: 

In the book "Unbroken", Laura Hillenbrand writes about the soldiers who came back from World War II.  She writes:

"For these men, the central struggle of postwar life was to restore their dignity and find a way to see the world as something other than menacing blackness."

I wonder if being in the ministry or in church leadership for many seasons can change our view of the world around us.  Do we ever get jaded?  Do we begin to view the lost as enemies instead of P.O.W.s?  Do we ever stop our rescue missions because of our tainted world view?  Can we still recognize how beautiful the world is and the beauty of the people in it?  Do we try to huddle in our Sanctuaries hoping that the wooden walls and the wooden cross will keep the menacing blackness out?  Or do we throw open our doors and lives and let His radiant light penetrate the darkness?  When do we quit worrying about if the boogie man is going to get us and start worrying about rescuing the folks who are being held captive by sin?

I pray that the menacing blackness would be our next battleground.  I pray that the Church would step into the darkness and never quarantine it.  I pray that the Church will continue to see the most beautiful thing God ever created...when a person steps out from the menacing blackness and into His wonderful light.