Are You Afraid of the Dark?

I am 22 years old and yes, I am still afraid of the dark. When I was younger I would turn off the light and dive into my bed and pull the covers over my head. When I moved out on my own I took a night light with me. True story. My last apartment I discovered that no night light was necessary because the street light was next to my window and it light up my room all night. While laying in bed last night I had an epiphany. I am fine in the dark as long as I can still see. It is that moment when the light goes off that scares me. In that split second before my eyes adjust I am surrounded by the unknown. I can't see what is in front of me. My faith is one and the same as my fear of the dark. When I can see what is ahead I am fine, it is when I am uncertain that the fear kicks in. The night light is what keeps me safe at night. In this dark world I can find security in God who is the Light. Our eyes always adjust. Sometimes that moment of darkness seems to last forever, but the light is always there. We just need to wait for the right time for us to see it.

8:12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

A Ten Thousand Dollar Temptation

Have you ever thought to yourself, "My life would be so much easier if I had just a little more money"? To be perfectly honest, I don't think I need a little more money; I want a lot more money. I am in some ways the typical "starving artist". I have survived many months on Top Ramin and a prayer. I know how it feels to stretch a few dollars to cover a few weeks of gas. More times then I'd like to admit, I have found myself staring at an empty bank account. I have worked two and sometimes three jobs at a time while attempting to use lunch breaks as audition time. Money to me isn't about buying myself new things. It is about head shots and acting classes, rent and cell phone bills. It is so I can go just one month without worrying if I can afford to do this on my own. I have often prayed for just a little extra help in the financial department. One day while reading the book Your Best Life Now, a simple sentence stuck with me. It said, "If God can't trust you with little things, why should he trust you with big things?" I felt confident in myself and thought, "I'm being very trustworthy! Bring on the blessings!" Shortly after finishing the book a friend of mine asked to borrow some money. While at work I went online to check my account balance to make sure I could afford to help him out. I had been payed a week before and expected to see an $800 balance. You can image my surprise when I looked and saw I had $10,800 in my account! It felt like something from a movie. My blessing had finally come! I could live off of this for months. No more sacrificing myself just to get by. I was set! Everyone around me told me to take the money and run. They said it was the banks fault and I deserved it. In the midst of the chaos, a small voice spoke to my heart. I was reminded of what I had read just a week prier. "If God can't trust you with little things, why should he trust you with big things?" It was as if the world around me frozen in time while I began to see what was happening. This was a test. Not quite the "little thing" I expected. Lets be honest here, TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS is a pretty big thing to trust someone with. I knew what I had to do at that moment. I walked over to the bank and explained they had made a mistake. With the push of a button all my head shots, acting classes and financial freedom were gone. It was as if the money had never been in my account. Life moved on and the memory of someone elses money soon faded. A few weeks had gone by and my rent was due. Humbled and with tears streaming down my face I began to pray. I was $200 short on rent. I needed a miracle. A few hours after I prayed I recieved a life changing text message. It was from God! Ha Ha gotcha! I guess in more ways then none it really was from God. A family in Seattle who I had only met once before, told me God had put me on their hearts. They knew nothing of what was going on in my life. They were just texting me to let me know that they had just transfered $200 into my account. That $200 dollars ment more to me then $10,000 or even a million! It was a love note from God, letting me know he heard my cries and he felt my pain. It was His way of reminding me of all the blessing I am given daily. I may get tried and test, but more often then I notice I am blessed. Are you waiting on $10,000? What areas in your life are you being tested? What areas are you being blessed? Can you see the difference?

"I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of contentment in every situation, whether it be full stomach or hunger, plenty or want. For I can do everything God ask me to do with the help of Jesus Christ who gives me strength."
-Phillippians 4:12,13