Facing The Dark Night Of The Soul

By Charles Ringma

‘But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.’ 
(Luke 22:32)

When we become Christians, well all wish that life from here on will go fairly smoothly. This clearly is not always the case. Sometimes life becomes even more complicated as we go through the adjustments that being a Christian entails. These adjustments come as a result of God’s Spirit fine-turning us to live in God-honoring ways.

There are also times when God seems so distant that we doubt whether we will ever again experience His presence. This deeply troubling experience sometimes occurs when we are emotionally or physically exhausted in the midst of active ministry. We may be busy praying, preaching and helping others with equally positive results, but there may be a gnawing emptiness in our soul and a sense that God has forsaken us.

The Spiritual fathers of the church called this ‘the dark night of the soul’’. Here faith no longer enjoys any outward supports. Feelings become numb. The heavens seem like brass, God is seemingly absent and we feel abandoned. At this point we can become overwhelmed by guilt and failure. We burden ourselves with questions that seek an answer for our distress, but we are left with no comfort or solution.

It is in these circumstances that we need to embark on a different course of action. For the more we grope, struggle, analyze ourselves and look for explanations the more distressed we become. We need, rather, to wait for God to ‘save’ us all over again. This does not mean that we are no longer Christian life is undergoing a significant transformation.

This heralds a change from a faith with its external supports to a faith that only trusts. From a faith that is secure to one that is uncertain.

There is nothing easy about this. We do not particularly enjoy the unfamiliar path, but the final outcome is worth the difficulty. For, as a result, our life of faith will be less self-assured and our Christian life less subject to easy explanations and techniques. Moreover, it radically shifts our faith in faith, to faith in God. At the same time, we can be sure that through this difficult time, God is quite capable of ‘saving’ us again.

Prayer: Lord, when my certainties are shaken, help me to trust You in the uncertainties.AMEN.