Choosing Darkness

Ever notice how society judges your success by how confident you are with yourself, by your lack of failures, problems or difficulties, by how popular and acceptable your choices are? A person is considered balanced if he or she has experienced few troubles and had no crisis; has never been knocked down and never felt disillusioned. Really?

Many spiritual writers say life has two paths: one with the visible, tangible, and tactile road, often superficial, often empty, with success, money, and fame as its goal; the other, the spiritual, often elusive, more intuitive, less trodden, less sure of ourselves, with seeking and deep reflection. Sometimes we try to combine the two, looking for a spirituality that is romantic, "good feeling", and esoteric, one that promises us security in exchange for prayers. So its not surprising when we judge spiritual progress by its lack of difficulties, as if obstacles signaled insincerity or lack of dedication.

Read again the first book of Genesis. It describes how God created not from calm, but from chaos, from darkness, from emptiness. The narrative describes how darkness is the matter which God used to bring forth something new. Believe that the Spirit of Truth isn't seeking that which is untroubled, but "troubled waters." Sometimes, a lack of difficulties stem from a fear to risk, a contentment with what is, and not from some devotedness to God.

Don't let yourself fall into the fallacy of pleasant living. Give yourself over to the Spirit of Truth. Do not shy away from risks, challenges or darkness. For when you step into this realm of spirituality, you will find a different way of living. You will experience all sorts of emotions hidden to you previously. You will stretch out your hand as Peter did and say, "Lord, save me." And you will find the Hand of God, and the darkness will become for you better than light. For you will have left the superficial behind, and entered into a deep relationship with the spirit.