A European fable tells the story of a spider who descended on a single thread from the lofty rafters of a barn and alighted near the corner of a window, where it built its web. The corner of the barn was busy, and soon the spider waxed fat and prosperous. One day the spider was looking at his web and noticed the strand that reached up and above. Forgetting its significance and thinking it was a stray thread, he snapped it—and his whole world fell apart.
Dr. David Jeremiah of Turning Point ministry used this fable in a message I heard this morning from his web site, to reiterate someone else’s description of King Solomon. As I listened to Dr. Jeremiah tell this fable, for a brief few moments my world seemed to stop and tears began to fall. In those fleeting moments I was not envisioning King Solomon; I was seeing my own life unfold before me.
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There was a time in my youth when I clung to that single strand of Faith, strong and steady. Fearlessly, without intimidation or inhibition, I would share God’s Word with my family and peers, joyfully led by a sense of urgency. Little by little my young mind would become filled with the voices of those whose framed portrait and portion of God no longer fit the God I was coming to know. Forced to declutter from so many of the questionable and confusing facts I had heard concerning God and His plan for my life, I sought to discover and understand, once and for all, the one Truth. And so, descending from the safety of the lofty places, I set out in search of that Truth. Thus began the construction of my own web of destruction. Unbeknownst to my searching heart, I, much like King Solomon, would find the journey to be ultimately empty—void.
I began constructing my elaborate web around the events that unfolded before me. It was those events that promised to make me into a better Christian and keep me on the Pilgrim’s Progress towards heaven. But as the years progressed I found myself caught up in those events, those works that came with more stress and confusion than peace. I delved even deeper into the depths of my soul, looking for God. Somewhere, I thought, amongst this web of my own making, God was still there. He had to be. I had read that God is no respecter of persons. God called me up from the abyss and put his ring on my hand and his robe on my back and prepared a feast for me. Why would He just drop out of the picture and leave me to wallow in this self righteous cesspool of muck and mire?
As the web weaver would have it, I soon found a different path along the journey. In my disillusioned attempts to gain God’s favor and love, I headed out on my own. But this journey took me into the valley of the shadow of death, down long hollows and empty caverns and corridors of self-made love, tainted relationships and deceptive kinship. There I found myself surrounded by other sojourners of "good intent" directing me to the place where their God lived. Now my search for Truth became more intense than ever.
“You can find him in the Light, Darlene. Look for him in the Light”.
“He is in the meditation, my friend. Meditate and you will find God”.
“He is in the moment. Enjoy the moment and you will have experienced God”.
The voices all but suffocated the cry of my heart. In my confusion I made my own will into what I believed was God’s will. I spun a strong and beautiful web of spiritual lies and self-absorption. On the outside I appeared strong and in control, but on the inside I was broken and dying. I had fallen into a black hole, tumbling and plummeting out of control with no end in site. In my calamities, some self made and others forced upon me as a child, I had forgotten the God of my youth. As a result, I severed the cord that connected me to the Truth. Soon after, my world crashed and I crashed with it. Flailing helplessly in the dark void I called out to God. “God, help me!!!”
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Thankfully and gratefully the story did not end there. For as a devoted loving Father always does, Truth picked my broken and disfigured soul up, dusted me off and spoke His Word in Love once again to my soul’s heart. His love surpassed all I could have ever imagined, all I had ever hoped for and longed for. This was real love ablaze with the scars of a life well served on our small planet. A perfect life whose ultimate destiny was to deny Himself and take up His cross for me. This love, the love of Truth itself now embraces me. I no longer choose to feel alone or desperate for the love and acceptance of another. I no longer am subject to the tainted affections and misguided seductions of a fragmented and dying world. And I no longer trek a broken and endless trail of lies and deception, like a wandering hound in pursuit of a crafty fox. The hound of heaven has sought me and found me.
In the last chapter of Ecclesiastes, King Solomon writes:
Remember your Creator in the days of your youth…
Remember Him—before the silver cord is severed…
Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
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From the NIV translation of the Bible
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When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said
"I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."
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He is not just in the light - He is the Light!
