When we were children, my brother and I would overturn rocks or old boards lying on the ground. We would like to watch small, slate-grey bugs scurrying away. These bugs, called sow bugs or potato bugs, are cold blooded land crustaceans with segmented bodies and seven pairs of legs. Sow bugs prefer dark, cool and damp places, so are most active at night, feeding on decaying plant material. They avoid the light, which would dry them out, decreasing their chance of survival. In a classroom experiment I read about online, a bright light like an iPhone flashlight was much more threatening to them than dim classroom light. The bright light definitely increased their frenzied behaviour in their effort to escape.
The reaction of sow bugs to the light reminds me of people who try to avoid the light of God.
Light is mentioned immediately in the first chapter of John’s gospel.
“The Word [Jesus] gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.” ( John 1:5 NLT)
The light of Jesus appears threatening to some, just as sunlight or a flashlight is threatening to sow bugs. When God’s light breaks into our darkness, we see ourselves as we really are. We see that our lives do not reach His perfect standard of holiness. Like Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden, we try to hide from God.
“God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil” (John 3:19b NLT)
We may not want our lives exposed to God’s light. We are afraid of what God might reveal. “All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed.” (John 3: 20 NLT) As the sow bug which thrives in darkness runs away from the light, those who are comfortable in their lifestyle run from God. They do not want to change.
On the other hand, God wants us to run from darkness and into His light. God doesn’t want us to hide in the dark. He desires to save us. He draws us in from the darkness by offering His Son, Jesus Christ, who died and rose again so we could access the Father. He wants to have fellowship with us. He wants us to spend eternity with Him.
“For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.”(John 3:16,17 NLT)
Please consider God’s amazing offer, and stop running from Him. Run into the Light!
Lord, thank You so much for giving us Jesus to draw us out of darkness into Your glorious light. May we refuse to run from it, so we continue to have unbroken fellowship with You. Amen.
Alice Burnett
Red Deer, Alberta, Canada
