Growing Up In Darkness
In Maputo, Mozambique, many unfortunate children call the streets their home. Having been abandoned by their families, they are forced to grow up, seek shelter, and hide in the dark, wet, and perilous parts of the city. You will find these poor children in the shadowy crevices of bridges and abandoned buildings. Perhaps most tragic of all, they have grown so accustomed to being in the darkness that it’s now what they look for. It’s even what they prefer (Read more about them here).
It’s heartbreaking that these kids must deal with so much difficulty at a young age. They don’t really know any other life. The older they get, the more they purposely seek dark parts of town because their comfort level is with darkness. The worst part is that there is little we can do but hope and pray they can one day find a better life, especially on a spiritual level.
The older I have become, the more I’ve realized how incredibly privileged I am to have grown up in a Christian household. I have never had to grow up in spiritual darkness. Even through times of struggle or the times when I would test and examine my faith, I still had the light right in front of me. I still had the foundation of a home focused on Christ, which made the light all the easier to take hold of.
The sad realty of this world is many are comfortable in spiritual darkness because it’s what they grew up in. Like the children in Mozambique choose to live in physical darkness, many in our world longs to stay in the spiritual darkness. 1 John 3:19-21 explains, “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.”
It’s unfortunate so many have grown up in both physical and spiritual darkness, but things don’t have to stay this way. Anyone can come into the light. Life is so much better in the light. The light is a guide to the right spiritual path (Psalm 119:105). Jesus is light and gives the light of life to those who come to Him (John 8:12). God is light and gives forgiveness to those who walk in Him (1 John 1:5-9).
No matter what our upbringing is, the good news is that all can come to the light. Let’s make sure we continue walking in the light (1 John 1:5-7) and help bring the light to others who are in darkness (Matthew 5:14-16).