I run early in the morning. E-A-R-L-Y. Before the sun comes up early. Before the birds sing early. Pitch black, no cars, eerily quiet early. I’m the only one out early.

I love it because all I hear is my own breathing and footsteps. No music. No podcast. No traffic. Just me and the very loud voices in my head. Voices that sometimes tell me who I am and who I’m not. How I’m not living up. How I’m not performing. How I’m not worthy.

Sometimes as I run on the dark trail, I can’t see ahead. I can’t see what’s around the very next corner. I can’t see what’s lurking in the shadows, in the blackness. I pick up the pace when something seems creepy. I move over if it seems suspicious. I’m tentative if I’m unsure.

But then slowly, light begins to overcome the darkness. First I can see my shoes, then the puddles from a morning shower, then the sticks (that resembled snakes in the dark) and leaves that scatter on the path. As the light continues to pour in, I see a friendly neighbor walking her dog, or another runner, cars and school buses, the sound of traffic and birds.

The darkness can be scary. God doesn’t want us to stay there in darkness. Only in His arms, His Word, His love and grace can we find the light we so crave. 1 John 1:5 says, “This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all.”

When we live in Christ, when we allow Him into our lives, our marriages, our minds and our relationships, we embody His light. It shows in our words and actions, our thoughts and our desires.

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.” John 8:12

So I continue to head out in the wee hours of morning, just to watch the light overcome the darkness, just as Jesus has overcome sin for us all.