"As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep,
and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him.
Then the LORD said to him, 'Know for certain . . .'
Genesis 15:12-13a
I'm fascinated by these verses and this story I had forgotten about God's covenant with Abram before he became Father Abraham. Genesis 15:12 appears in a different version at the top of Oswald Chamber's devotional for January 19 in his classic devotional book, My Utmost for His Highest. That version reads, "An horror of great darkness fell upon him." Timing is everything. I needed this reminder that even Abram - imperfect but faith-filled Abram experienced "an horror of great darkness" after sacrificing exactly what God told him to sacrifice. God actually sent this darkness over his servant to get his full attention to hear both the bad and the good news about his descendants. First the bad news: they would move to a foreign country where they would be mistreated and finally enslaved for 400 years. Then the good news: deliverance, a prosperous exodus, and a promised land.
Has God allowed "a thick and dreadful darkness" to settle over you? He wants your full attention because He has something to say: "Remain my faithful servant, child, because I am with you now and deliverance is in your future."
Father, we see darkness and we think "punishment" or we feel abandoned. Jesus felt it on the cross when the skies grew black as night, but He held on and sacrificed everything to follow Your call. Deliverance arrived and the Light rose to shine eternally. Give your children reading this hope that if they're in dark and dreadful places You're there with them, wanting to speak to them, promising Your Presence now and a prosperous deliverance in Your perfect timing.
In the Name of Jesus, Who felt the complicated emotions of being human
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