Songs in the Night

Evening Primrose

photo source




I will give you the treasures of darkness
And hidden riches of secret places
That you may know that I, the LORD
Who call you by your name;
Am the God of Israel.
-Isaiah 45:3




If I say, "Surely the darkness shall fall on me,"
Even the night shall be light about me;
Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You,
But the night shines as the day;
The darkness and the light
are both alike to You.
- Psalm 139:11-12




I call to remembrance my song in the night...
- Psalm 77:6




When I remember You on my bed,
I meditate on You in the night watches.
-Psalm 63:6




You, LORD, keep my lamp burning;
my God turns my darkness into light.
- Psalm 18:28




For his anger lasts only a moment,
but his favor lasts a lifetime;
weeping may remain for a night,
but rejoicing comes in the morning.
-Psalm 30:5




There is a river whose streams make glad
the city of God,
The holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High,
God is in the midst of her,
she shall not be moved;
God shall help her
just at the break of dawn.
- Psalm 46:4, 5

I awoke this morning with these two Bible passages clearly impressed on my heart:

I will give you the treasures of darkness
and hidden riches of secret places...


God shall help her just at the break of dawn....

These words were so reassuring to me.

After spending twelve days here in Manila, the time has come for me to once again return to my home city of Bacolod.

Bacolod has been my home for the past 32 years, but saying good-bye to Manila always makes me feel sad.

It is understandable. I was born and raised in this city, and a part of me recognizes that. The home where I grew up was filled with such love and tender memories, so that even if my parents have long gone, this house still feels very much like home to me. Another important reason of course is that my only daughter now lives here, and at twenty six years of age, Obedient One is no longer just a daughter... she has also become my close friend!

Many beautiful events took place within the twelve short days that I was here.

Among other things, on Tuesday, my dear friends Rosemarie and Tina treated me to an early celebration of my birthday. We had lunch at my favorite place, the Cyma Greek Taverna in Greenbelt, Makati City. I had my fill of roca salata (authentic Greek salad) and paidakia (mouth watering roasted lamb chops) and baby clams in angel hair pasta. On top of the sumptuous food, Rosemarie lent me her MP3 of The Bible Experience audio Bible which I was able to load on to my laptop's MP3 player.

For the past two days, my spirit has been feasting on hearing the word of God. I just could not have enough of it!

There are just too many sad and painful things going on around the world, even right here in my own country.

And in the midst of all these uncertain times, I still choose to let the word of God speak hope to my inmost being.

My heart chooses to see the beautiful.

It was with much joy that I received the verses that were on my heart to greet me as I woke up to another day.

Indeed, there are treasures that the dark seasons of our lives give back to us. God does not willingly afflict the sons of men!

There are flowers that bloom only at night!

The songbird learns to sing its sweetest songs in the dark!

In Nature Lessons it is written:

In the full light of day, and in hearing of the music of other voices, the caged bird will not sing the song that his master seeks to teach him.

He learns a snatch of this, a trill of that, but never a separate and entire melody.

But the master covers the cage, and places it where the bird will listen to the one song he is to sing.

In the dark, he tries and tries again to sing that song until it is learned, and he breaks forth in perfect melody.

Then the bird is brought forth, and ever after he can sing that song in the light.

Thus God deals with His children. He has a song to teach us, and when we have learned it amid the shadows of affliction we can sing it ever afterward.

These powerful words of Scripture

I will give you the treasures of darkness
And hidden riches of secret places
That you may know that I, the LORD
Who call you by your name;
Am the God of Israel.

have spoken to me many times in the past and they continue to speak. God's Word is so rich a gift... it is a gift that keeps on giving... it is a word that keeps on speaking!

My best lessons were learned, and my faith was broken and reinforced, during the darkest moments of my life.

Indeed, as I prepare to leave my Manila home in a few minutes, I have these words of encouragement safely tucked within my heart.


Dearest Father, thank You for being with me in every season of my life.

Thank You that Your words are alive, and through them You continually give me hope, courage, and joy.

How I want my life to be a garden where flowers bloom even in the night seasons, and where songs I have learned in the dark will continue to be sung.

--0--

Below are some snapshots taken from our back garden this morning. This garden does not receive too much care and tending aside from the daily watering... Obedient One does not have time to do it. Many parts of the garden are suffering from neglect. Yet, I am surprised at how willingly it "gives back" - probably it still recognizes the love that has been poured into it in times past. These past days, I have spent time pruning and cutting back the overgrowth, and pouring compost material into the planters. Despite the lack of attention, the garden still gives off a rugged kind of beauty:









Word of God Speak by MercyMe