Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before His eyes, and He is the one to whom we are accountable.” Hebrews 4:13
I saw the light…I really did. You know there are some songs that stay forever young in church. I know in our church, you crank up, “I’ll Fly Away” and just about everyone gets fired up and joins in. Well, the other day we sang another one of those “forever young” songs. I was teaching about Jesus being the light of the world and our worship guy led us in a rousing rendition of “I Saw the Light.” This gospel and country classic was written by Hank Williams Sr. way back in 1948 and has been recorded by many artists. It is just a good one.
Well, the other day, you might say that I saw the light. I was speaking at Priority, a statewide event for ladies from the Illinois Baptist State Association and it happened there. As I walked up on stage, the house lights were already dimmed down and there were four very, very bright stage lights letting their light shine. Now I teach every week somewhere and never have I seen brighter lights. What was so amazing is that I couldn’t see one face in the crowd. I knew they were out there—they were an enthusiastic bunch—but all I could see was the lights. It really was kinda funny. I felt like I was speaking to a totally dark room—but that wasn’t the case.
During the next general session, it was my turn to be a participant in the audience. So, I joined my wife and a several ladies from our church and we worshipped and sang. Finally, it was time for the featured speaker to speak. She came out on the stage and there she was for everyone to see. Then, I looked around at the audience and realized that the room wasn’t totally dark, it was just the lights shining on the stage were so bright. The bottom line is they could see me, and they could see each other—but the speaker—nada, none, zero. I was amazed and I knew somewhere in all of that there had to be lesson, there had to be a truth. And then it came to me.
I realized that sometimes we can be blinded by life and yet all around us everyone else sees clearly. Sometimes we are blinded by our own sin, or circumstances, or desires. When that happens, we will find it is very difficult to make a good decision because of our blindness. And sometimes we assume that because we can’t see—others can’t see us. Surprise, surprise, surprise. Guess what? They can. And wait—there’s more. Even if we can hide from others we cannot hide from God. Listen to this truth found in Hebrews 4:13. It says, “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before His eyes, and He is the one to whom we are accountable.”
Wait. What? Does that mean He saw, He heard, He witnessed that thing you thought no one saw, no one heard, no one witnessed. Does that mean that what we thought was secret…wasn’t…isn’t? That is exactly what it means. Honestly, that is just a hair frightening. What this means is that we really need to be careful with all our actions, words and even thoughts. Trust me on this one…blinded it or not…we are fully exposed.
I really was surprised to experience this brilliant blindness…caused not by darkness but by light. I was also surprised to find out that though I was blind…no one else was. Talk about a wakeup call! I have learned over the past three years as we have shared together through Grits that there is one thing that no longer surprises me. Can you guess what it is? Yup, you are right, “He’s got this.” Bro. Dewayne
Grits with Grace 