Astronomers tell us the universe is dotted with black holes. There are so many it is impossible to count them. Black holes are formed at the death of a massive star. The star collapses and becomes so dense, its gravity allows nothing to escape, not even a beam of light. Therefore, a black hole is essentially an invisible, inescapable, mass of matter. It is, without a doubt, one of the most mysterious parts of our universe. The term, black hole, has become symbolic for some bottomless pit kind of problem that sucks you in and takes you down and seems impossible to escape.
How do you escape the black holes of life?
A number of biblical characters become examples of what it is like to fall into one of these black holes. The Bible tells of a man named Job who encounters a series of calamities that came into his life one right after another. In a matter of hours, he lost his family, his health, his wealth and his hope. He found the gravity of his circumstances sucking him into a place of inescapable darkness and despair. He described it as though here were entering “the land of darkness and deep shadow, the land of utter gloom as darkness itself, of deep shadow without order, and which shines as the darkness.” Job 10:21b-22
Job was in one of the black holes of life!
Your circumstances may not be as severe as those of Job. But there are times when the trials of life border on overwhelming. One thing seems to pile up on top of another, until before you know it, you are engulfed in darkness. Does God understand the gloom of your darkness? Yes.
God has always had a plan to deliver you from the black hole where you are!
Are you being sucked into one of the black holes of life? Is your life engulfed in the darkness of gloom and despair? God sent Jesus into the world to be the light of life. Jesus came as God’s answer to all the black holes of life. God promised:
On that day the deaf will hear words of a book, and out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind will see. The afflicted also will increase their gladness in the LORD, and the needy of mankind will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel. Isaiah 29:18-19
Are you passing through a period of discouraging darkness? Is it the darkness of despair, the darkness of uncertainty, or the darkness of sin?
It is the Lord Jesus Himself who will lead you out of darkness!
He came to end your gloom and increase your gladness. He came to deliver you from the black hole of sin and shame, from the black hole of sadness and sorrow, from the black hole of discouragement and despair. The Holy One of Israel is your escape from all the black holes of life. There are untold numbers of black holes in the universe ye we have no idea where they all are.
If you have fallen into one of the black holes of life, God knows exactly where you are!
When you fall into one of the black holes of life, you are bruised and broken, helpless and hopeless, and locked in the dark dungeon of despair. According to Isaiah, the mission of Jesus is: “To open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon and those who dwell in darkness from the prison. Isaiah 42:7
God not only knows where you are, He knows the way out of your darkness. God is not surprised by your despair. He is not shocked that you are shackled in a dark dungeon of sin and shame. He is not shaken by the fact that you don’t know the way out of your circumstances. He knows your darkness and He is the only One who can lead you out of darkness into the light.
“I will lead the blind by a way they do not know, in paths they do not know I will guide them. I will make darkness into light before them and rugged places into plains.” Isaiah 42:16
Have you fallen into the bottomless pit of some black hole of life? Does there seem to be no way out and no light in your darkness. Listen to what David said in Psalm 139:
If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, And the light around me will be night,” Even the darkness is not dark to You, And the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You. Psalm 139:11-12
The darkness of your circumstances can’t hide you from God. God has night vision. He can see in the dark, through the dark, and beyond the dark to the deliverance He has ordained for you.
Who is among you that fears the LORD, that obeys the voice of His servant, that walks in darkness and has no light? Let him trust in the name of the LORD and rely on his God. Isaiah 50:10
The way out of the black holes of life is to trust Jesus and follow Jesus!
There is only one way to walk in the darkness. You walk by faith. You trust God. You seek His presence. You hold His hand. You follow His guidance.
“It is He who reveals the profound and hidden things; He knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with Him. Daniel 2:22
Is it dark in your circumstances? I know it is. But He also knows! He knows what lurks in your darkness. He knows how to lead you through this dark time in your life.
The enemy would like nothing more than to see you go down the drain into the darkness of one of life’s black holes. He wants the gravity of your circumstances to drag you deeper and deeper until you give up and let go. But God, who rules the universe, rules the all the black holes of this universe and He is sovereign over the black holes the enemy has placed along your path.
Do not rejoice over me, O my enemy. Though I fall I will rise; Though I dwell in darkness, the LORD is a light for me. Micah 7:8
When you feel that you are being engulfed by one of the black holes of life fix your eyes on the Lord Jesus. Look to Him. Cry out to Him. Wait for Him. Follow Him.
Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” John 8:12
God sent Jesus as a Light into the darkness of this world. He came to deliver you from the black hole of sin and shame, from the black hole of sadness and sorrow, from the black hole of discouragement and despair. Jesus is the one who can deliver you from all the black holes of life.
The same Lord Jesus who called Lazarus from the darkness, deadness, and despair of the tomb, is speaking to your heart calling you out of darkness into His marvelous light. Turn your face away from your circumstances and turn your eyes upon Jesus.
For He rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son. Colossians 1:13
This is God’s promise to any one of you who seems to be swallowed up by the darkness of one of life’s black holes.
Until God brings you out of the darkness, He will be with you in the darkness!
There is a man in the Bible whose name was Joseph. Joseph was thrown into a pit by his brothers. Some of the worst black holes of life are those we experience when we have been hurt by someone we love.
Now it came about, when Joseph reached his brothers, that hey stripped Joseph of his tunic, the varicolored tunic that was on him; and they took him and threw him into the pit. Now the pit was empty, without any water in it. Genesis 37:23-24
That may be where you are right now. You may be in a pit of despair because of some hurt someone else has brought to your life. Joseph had been down in a pit. Then, he was taken down to Egypt as a slave. He had been taken down against his will. But the downward spiral of his life was being monitored by God’s eye and being moved by God’s purpose. All the hurt that came into Joseph’s life did not escape God’s notice. Joseph’s circumstances were under God’s sovereignty and so are yours. What made the difference in Joseph’s circumstances? The Lord was with Joseph!
Joseph is not the only person in the Bible whose call carried him through the dungeon of disappointment. Life has twists and turns, deep valleys, and dark moments, all incredibly lonely places. Sometimes, when following God carries us into one of those places, the disappointment and discouragement can be overwhelming.
Later, Joseph found himself spiraling even deeper into this black hole. It seemed to suck him further and further in. He was put in a dark dungeon prison where he spent two years. But while Joseph was there in the prison, the Lord was with Joseph; Genesis 39:20b The clear witness of Scripture was that the Lord was with Him. However, it might not have always been clear to Joseph. But it was always true. God was with Joseph, and His providence was governing the course of Joseph’s life. God had a purpose for Joseph and a plan to deliver him from that black hole of life.
There is another side to the black holes of life!
Artists often portray the image of a black hole always “sucking things in” because of its powerful gravity. Yet, at the same time, they portray it sending things out the other side. Black holes in space have a creative power. God uses them as star factories. There was also another side to Joseph’s black hole. God brought him through to the other side. Joseph would ultimately become the second most powerful man in all of Egypt, but first, he had to go through one of life’s black holes.
What is God doing in your life as you pass through one of the black holes of life?
I can’t give you the answer to that question. However, I believe God is doing something. I know that because it is the witness of Scripture. But I also know that because it has been my experience. More than once, I have experienced one of life’s black holes. As you see, I came out on the other side and lived to tell the story. If what I have said has been a blessing to you, then know that God’s plan to bring you through your own black hole includes blessing your life as well as the life of others! May the Lord be with you, guiding your way through the darkness!
Photo by Magne Træland
