I had a weird but enlightening (forgive the pun!) experience this morning.
It was one of early starts – up at 5am and out of the door by 5.20 so that I could get to YFC head office at Halesowen, beat the traffic and have breakfast before we start the meeting.

We were meeting to look at our integrate mission strategy and so my mind was on mission and what that is all about as I was driving.

At 5.30 in the morning it is dark! This morning it was dark and wet and so driving was pretty hard work until …. it became light when the difference was unbelievable!

I think this was the first time I have truly understood the biblical saying of moving from darkness to light. This morning I experienced it. For me it was coming out of stressful situation where I was having to look carefully for clues to see what way to go, and then suddenly not only could I see where to go, but I could see where I was going in relation to others and the terrain around me.

In the darkness I could see the car in front and could just see the road in my headlights. That was it! I could not see anything else because my whole focus, my undivided attention needed to be on where I was going. My direction, my journey was all consuming.

Bring in the light, and yes I still need to look where I am going, but it was no longer an all consuming process. I could look around and notice, and enjoy, and be attentive to other things.

Moving from darkness to light is an experience that allows you to enjoy the journey and everything around you. It allows you to take your focus off of where you are going, so that you can enjoy where you are going as well. It allows you to relax and think more about why you are going, rather than being stuck on the where you are going.

Mission must help those in restraining darkness move into and experience the liberating light!