Tuesday With Teri

          When I was a little girl, I was afraid of the dark.  This posed quite a problem since I shared a room with my sister who preferred a dark room in which to sleep.  Each night there would be a quiet battle about just how far to crack the door and how much light we could let in the room.  She would try to give me tips on going to sleep in spite of my fear…count sheep, talk to the Sheppard, think happy thoughts…none of which helped in the least, until one night she told me to close my eyes.   She then proceeded to make the point that when I closed my eyes, it was dark and no different from the dark room.  Now, that could have gone badly, I often wonder why I did not start feeling afraid to close my eyes, but it worked.  I also knew that I could banish that mean old darkness with nothing more than the flick of a switch or the opening of a door…peace at last.

          Today is Valentine’s Day.  Today I am not only thinking of those I love, but of a love far greater than any I could imagine.  I am thinking of the love bestowed on us all by God through His son Jesus Christ.  Today I am reminded that in Him there is no darkness.  Today I am thankful for a love that immerses me in light.

          I hope that as you read these Words you will know that you are loved beyond measure by a God who defeats darkness, immerses you in light ,who created you, knows you, sees you, protects you, plans for you and thinks of you more often than there are  grains of sand…that is LOVE. 

Happy Valentine’s Day!

1 God, investigate my life; get all the facts firsthand. 2 I’m an open book to you; even from a distance, you know what I’m thinking. 3 You know when I leave and when I get back; I’m never out of your sight.

4 You know everything I’m going to say before I start the first sentence. 5 I look behind me and you’re there, then up ahead and you’re there, too – your reassuring presence, coming and going.

6 This is too much, too wonderful – I can’t take it all in! 7 Is there anyplace I can go to avoid your Spirit? to be out of your sight? 8 If I climb to the sky, you’re there! If I go underground, you’re there! 9 If I flew on morning’s wings to the far western horizon, 10 You’d find me in a minute – you’re already there waiting!

11 Then I said to myself, “Oh, he even sees me in the dark! At night I’m immersed in the light!” 12 It’s a fact: darkness isn’t dark to you; night and day, darkness and light, they’re all the same to you.

13 Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother’s womb. 14 I thank you, High God – you’re breathtaking! Body and soul, I am marvelously made! I worship in adoration – what a creation! 15 You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something.

16 Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, The days of my life all prepared before I’d even lived one day. 17 Your thoughts – how rare, how beautiful! God, I’ll never comprehend them! 18 I couldn’t even begin to count them – any more than I could count the sand of the sea. Oh, let me rise in the morning and live always with you!

(Psalm 139:1-18)The Message