The Light in the Darkness

Meditations in the Season of Epiphany 

January 24, 2022

The Light in the Darkness

Jesus told them, “Go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen— the blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor.” And he added, “God blesses those who do not fall away because of me.”

Matthew 11:4-6

The Day of Epiphany officially falls on January 6, the day following the 12 days of Christmas, and it begins The Season after Epiphany. The season of Epiphany lasts until Ash Wednesday, which this year is March 2, 2022. The theme of Epiphany is the manifestation that Jesus is the Messiah, and the season begins with the visit of the Maji, the baptism of Jesus, and the wedding at Cana. Throughout the season, we see the ways in which Jesus was revealed as God’s Son, the Savior of the world. Our response to the scriptures in the Season of Epiphany is to look for ways Jesus is revealing himself in our lives and our communities.   

In December 2012, we were busy unpacking as we had just moved into our own home after I had retired in June of that year. Cheryl told me her doctor had called and reported she had an abnormal mammogram. He wanted to perform another test. The second test was inconclusive, and a biopsy was suggested. A day or two after the biopsy her hospital nurse advocate called and said the biopsy was negative for cancer. We breathed a sigh of relief and offered a prayer of thanksgiving. The next afternoon we were preparing to attend a Christmas concert with friends when Cheryl received a phone call from her doctor. He told her that the hospital had mixed up the results of the biopsies and had given her the wrong report. Her biopsy was positive for cancer. An appointment with a surgeon was arranged and four weeks after the initial incorrect biopsy report, I waited as Cheryl was in surgery to remove the cancerous tissue. Her surgery was successful. Five days later I had a heart attack and five days after being admitted to the hospital, I had open-heart surgery with five bypass grafts. Those were dark days for us.

In the six months before our hospital visits, we made many new friends in the community where we purchased our home, and we had connected with a church family. Throughout our surgery and recovery, we were surrounded by our pastor, church family and neighbors who encouraged us, prayed for us, and assisted us in our recovery. Truly, they were bringing the light of Christ into our lives; they were an epiphany for us.

My Takeaway: As I was wheeled into the surgery suite, I was praying the words of Psalm 23: “Thou art with me . . .” Cheryl said the recovery room nurse, who was a Wesleyan pastor’s wife, told her those same words were on my lips as I regained consciousness from the anesthesia. Knowing Jesus as Emmanuel, God with us is my personal epiphany.

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2022 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.