ART & POETRY BY PAUL & KATHY BOECHER

The days are getting longer in case you haven’t noticed. The light reaches the end of the day at almost 9 PM in my part of the world. That gives us so much extra light that we should be able to get much more accomplished in a day than we did three months ago. Today’s painting is a good example of how our streetlights can be most helpful when the days return to being shorter. Have you ever experienced complete darkness? What if all those artificial lights went out due to a power loss? The experience can be daunting. Your entire street is dark, making you feel vulnerable.

Even in our darkest times on this planet, we tend to feel completely helpless and alone. Our Creator God has made it possible for us to see, even when there is no light. We can be sure He will be at our side to lead us on the right path. He is with us every step of the way. God is light. He is the Creator of it and the only true source of perfect light. Even when the world’s power source goes dark, we have assurance from God that He is the light of the world.

These dark days of winter swell into an endless swirl of emotions,

We can’t seem to pull ourselves out of sadness, depression or anxiety,

There is only one way to eliminate those destructive feelings,

But how do you harness the sun and capture the magnificence of its light?

God is the source,

Some have tried to manage the physical light that encompasses them,

Some struggle to bring illumination back into their lives by setting goals and dreaming dreams,

Some never find it,

Some are filled to the brim with it,

Some will continue to spend their lives searching for it,

God is the source,

He created light from darkness – it was His first creation,

Separating the night from day – setting time into place,

He controls the sun, the moon and stars,

He lights the world with His radiance,

He is the source,

When the world seems so ugly and dark,

When it seems that nothing will ever be bright again,

When the darkness of sin has penetrated every aspect of our daily living,

Turn to the Creator,

His light shines brightly through His Word.