Yesterday morning on the way to my daily swim, I found myself driving into a very dense fog. The car lights bounced back and created a blinding white halo, and with visibility down to a few feet, I could barely see the road. Fortunately, I have been driving on this road everyday and knew every turn of this road by heart. Otherwise, I would have to slowly crawl forward and be frightened to death. There is a saying, life is as unpredictable as the weather. There may be a dense fog suddenly appearing in our life too, and we would not be so fortunate because we forever travel on a new road in life. Therefore, whenever we encounter dense fog in our life journey, we have to slow down and take caution, because one mistake could wreck our life.
Life is indeed like driving at night. We must turn on the headlights to illuminate the path forward. The farther we can see, the easier the driving would be. Many people may seek for wealth, because money can serve as a high beam illuminating the road in front. The more money we have in the pocket, the more confident we may feel towards tomorrow. Like the famous rich man, we may congratulate ourselves, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” (Lk. 12:19 ESV) But God may suddenly send dense fog our way and wake us up from the illusive faith we have in money. Our vision into the future is practically zero. This awakening in the fog may come too late, because not everyone who head into a dense fog may exit safely. We must prepare ahead of time for the vision that can piece through the fog, so that we may know the way despite the fog and safely arrive our destination.
After reaching certain mileage, every life journey would eventually end up in a fog. Our physical strength and cognitive ability would go downhill, and even our eyesight would decline. As the Poet Du Fu described the inevitable blurring of our vision, “All the flowers are forever clouded by a fog for an old man.” Yet this blur could also bring some beauty. Later yesterday morning, when I drove to church during sunrise, the fog was still present. Under the morning sunshine, the golden mist turned the rolling meadows and forests into a breath-taking beautiful fairyland. It is the same visibility-reducing fog, which becomes a deadly mist in a dark and meandering mountain road, but turns into a glorious cloud under bright sunshine over a straight thoroughfare.
This last fog hanging over the end of every life journey was meant to swallow us alive. We can all amen the prayer that Job prayed when he was entangled by the deadly fog in his life. He prayed to God, Then cease, and leave me alone, that I may find a little cheer before I go-- and I shall not return-- to the land of darkness and deep shadow, the land of gloom like thick darkness, like deep shadow without any order, where light is as thick darkness. (Job 10:20-22 ESV) Thanks be to God who hears the prayers of the dying, He sent us His Son Jesus Christ as The light shines in the darkness. (Jn. 1:5 ESV) The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. (Jn. 1:9 ESV) To all who have received this true light, they received the vision by faith that can piece through the fog. Because faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (Heb. 11:1 ESV) It can turn the deadly fog along life’s journey into a glorious cloud. In the last two chapters of the Bible, we can dimly see the beautiful destination behind the glorious cloud and see the towing shape of the Holy City, having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. (Rev. 21:11 ESV) I could never grow tired in beholding this beautiful yet cloudy scene. It gives me direction when I am in a dense fog. One day when the dust settles and cloud lifts, let us meet again at that Holy City by the river of life!
Prayer: O Lord! Open our eyes that we may see your promise of glory! May your light turn the mist into glorious cloud for us that we can march on every day!
No comments:
Post a Comment