I don’t know if you’re like me or not, but sometimes when I read the Bible I skim across the words. At other times, I have to back up my eyes and make sure I read that right while a brief inner dialogue ensues.

“Moses approached the thick darkness where God was”?

Ummmm. Say again? God was…where?

In the darkness.

Ok. Wait…just, stop. That can’t be right.

Why not?

Well, um…BECAUSE!

Oh, that’s brilliant.

No. I mean, God is a god of light. He came to shine light in the darkness. He is the Father of heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He even encourages us to shine our light in the darkness to be more like Him.

So?

Sooooo, what’s He doing in the darkness?

The thick darkness.

The what?

The thick darkness. The verse says God was in the thick darkness.

No, it doesn’t.

Yes. It does. Go back and read it again.

…Well, I’ll be….

WATCH YOUR LANGUAGE!

Ahem. Sorry. Well, what the…I mean, how in the … Ummm, what’s God doing in the thick darkness? That just makes no sense.

Sure it does. You remember Psalm 139, don’t you?

The one about being fearfully and wonderfully made?

Yes, but not that part. Above that. Go read that real quick.

Ok. Hold on …. “Where shall I go from your Spirit?
    Or where shall I flee from your presence?
⁸ If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
    If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
⁹ If I take the wings of the morning
    and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
¹⁰ even there your hand shall lead me,
    and your right hand shall hold me.
¹¹ If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,
    and the light about me be night,”
¹² even the darkness is not dark to you;
    the night is bright as the day,
    for darkness is as light with you.”

You get it now?

Um, I think so. But let’s just say I need to talk this one out loud.

(Geez, you’re dense)

HEY! I can still hear you, you know!

Oh. Sorry. Look, it’s all there, especially in verse 11 and 12. Read those again.

“¹¹ If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,
    and the light about me be night,”
¹² even the darkness is not dark to you;
    the night is bright as the day,
    for darkness is as light with you.” …Yeah. So?

Sooo, God is a God of the light AND the darkness. In fact, if you look closely, you’ll see that darkness is not dark to God….

OH! I see it! And the darkness is as light when I am with God! HE is the God of my good AND my bad. He is the light no matter where He is, even when the darkness covers me and my life is full of nothing but night!

So, where is God?

In the thick darkness. He is there if I lose my job, or my family, or go bankrupt, or am despised by everyone. No matter how dark it gets, God is there.

That’s right. And you know what’s really cool about this verse?

What’s that?

God was waiting for Moses in the thick darkness. Before Moses ever entered, God was already there.

Um. Wait. What?…Can you say that again?