Advent Devotion – A Light Shines in the Darkness – Day 19

For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.
2 Corinthians 4:6

Songs of Praise in the Dark

I’m an early riser; my favorite time of the day is the time surrounding the sunrise. I usually wake up about half an hour before dawn, feed my dog, and then sit down in the quiet with a steaming hot cup of coffee and my Bible. I want to spend time with Jesus before the rush of a new day sets in. And recently, in the quiet, still darkness, I noticed something.

The little songbirds roosting in the bushes near my window began singing about fifteen minutes before dawn. What a beautiful example of trusting faith! They begin singing while it is still completely dark. They seem to have complete faith that the sun is rising in 15 minutes or so, even though they haven’t seen it yet today.

Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we have not seen. And sure enough, after a few minutes of singing in the darkness, the sun rises up over the horizon—every single day.

Notice what this light in 2 Corinthians does: it gives us “the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.” In other words, when we see Jesus, we see God’s glory. His compassion, his mercy, his humility, and his victory over sin and death reveal what God is truly like. The world often searches for glory in power, success, or beauty. But God’s glory is most fully displayed in the suffering love of Christ on the cross and the radiant triumph of his resurrection. That is glory that shines for eternity; nothing can ever dim this light.

And this light doesn’t just surround us—it shines in our hearts. It is deeply personal. God’s Spirit makes Christ known to us in such a way that our inner beings are changed. The gospel is more than a set of truths we know with our minds. It is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes, the living reality we experience in our souls. It is the light that awakens faith, strengthens us in trials, and fills us with joy that circumstances cannot steal.

Like those little songbirds who don’t flutter around in the bushes worried about the darkness and fretting about the challenges of the day, may we also begin singing songs of praise—even when it’s still dark—because we know what is coming! His light shines out of the darkness every day and will continue to shine until we are in his fully illuminated presence for eternity.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, you have given us nature to steward, but we can also learn from it. Help me to learn trust and faith from the example of these little songbirds. Help me to sing your praises even when it seems dark and I am going through challenging times. I may not understand how you are working this out for my good, but I know that you are. Thank you for shining your light out of the darkness and into my heart so I can see your glory on display in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Help me to continue to walk really close to Jesus and invite those around me to take a step or two closer into the light. In Jesus’ name I confidently pray. Amen.

Written by Rhoda Wolle