Night Faith

John 8:12 is a spiritual echo of a physical reality God established long before any of us ever learned to be afraid of the dark.

God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night. . . .” God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. . . . And God saw that it was good. Genesis 1:14, 16, 18

In the beginning, God’s night light ensured that absolute darkness would not utterly eclipse us. He would always leave a light on, day and night. Jesus’ words expanded that ancient assurance from outer space to inner space: His followers would have the companionship of His light during each day and through every night.

This is important because we tend to think that spiritual growth prefers one over the other. We tend to forget that the night (not just the light) was also God’s creation.

In the Creation story, day complemented (as opposed to voided) the night. Night faith seemed to be as much a part of God’s “in the beginning” goodness as day faith. Pre-sin, pre-fall, pre-curse, and pre-drama, night was one of the original residents of Eden.

By God’s design, every day contains (roughly) twenty-four hours, meaning that faith in God is to be lived out during the day and the night. Physically, however, we have a rather long history of efforts to eliminate, or at least shorten the night. With candles or clicks, every age has tried to make the night bow to its perceived need for more light and less darkness.

Thankfully, we are slowly regaining respect for the night’s healing powers as researchers affirm the clear connection between darkness, sleep, immune system health, and mental and emotional wellness. Even so, we still are reticent to respect the night spiritually. We prefer to grow by day, thank you. We prefer faith in full sun. We prefer to see clearly, to know much, and to walk confidently into a well-lit future.

But what if spiritual nights are also essential? What if avoiding the night is sabotaging the health of our souls? What if there is something we need in the night that cannot be found in the day?

As I study the night stories of Scripture and monitor the night seasons in my own soul, I believe that night faith leads us into something far more satisfying than understanding and far more powerful than peace. Such spiritual pain expands territory for the last thing we expect and the very thing we are often afraid to lose: our love for God.