Day 6: Rats and Bats

My son (and daughter), keep to your father's commands and do not forsake your mother's teaching ... For these commands are a lamp, this teaching is a light, and the corrections of discipline are the way to life. Proverbs 6:20, 23

Have you ever experienced complete darkness? Have you been in a place where you could hold your hand in front of face and not see it?

As a teenager our family visited the Lewis and Clarke Caverns in Montana. Our tour guide was a young, funny guy who explained the detail and wonders of that underground world. In one large room he warned us that he was going to turn off the lights, but that we needed to know something before he did it. He explained that the cave was infested with rats that liked to chew on the tips of shoestrings, and bats that got caught in the longer hair of women. He was obviously joking - or was he?

I've only been in darkness equal to that black hole on two other occasions. The lights went out and the numbing and deafening darkness enveloped us. Just then something brushed against my foot. I gave out a swift and certain kick in the direction of the intruder.

I'm not sure if my brother ever forgave me. He stumbled in the darkness and the guide quickly put on the lights. My reward for warding off the "intruder" was a stone-hard punch to the arm.

The scriptures uses the metaphore of light to describe God's Word. Light illuminates our path and shows us the stumbling blocks (or pebbles) that are in our way. A light exposes what is thought to be hidden in the darkness. The light reveals truth.

The book of Proverbs takes the reader down a light-enabled path, seeing not only evil in others, but also the darkness that lurks in the deepest part of our souls. I wouldn't be surprised if it also scatters a number of rats and bats that are out there, just waiting for the next unsuspecting victim.