Darkness and Light

What Is Darkness?

Darkness destroys and in the darkness the evil things dwell. It consumes all it touches. It is a home for the evil within a soul and with it, evil is manifested. It gives nothing and wants all. Darkness ravages all it sees. It is chaos, it is destruction, it is fear, it is death. Darkness inhabits every corner of this world. It inhabits our very soul.

Darkness seeks out its prey as a shark smells blood, as a wolf hunts a beast, as a man hates his brother. Darkness feels nothing, for emotion died long ago. Its sole purpose is to torture the living. Darkness wants only devastation for it delights only in the agony of others. With darkness comes evil, and with evil, darkness.

These two brothers ravage the world and bring only destruction and death. As they move, a visible path of carnage can be seen. Everything can be distinguished to be good or evil by its fruit. Darkness brings only death, horror, agony, and ruin. It seeks to pull everything living thing into a formless void. That is darkness.

What Is Light?

Light is hope. It is salvation, it is love, it is joy. Light reveals everything for with light comes truth, and with truth, justice. Nothing can hide from its everlasting rays. Darkness cannot hide for light expels the dark. Light is the essence of all that’s good. It is all encompassing.

Light rejoices not with pain and suffering, but with the truth and with love. Light seeks those who are lost in the darkness and saves them. Light is humble in spirit, but is like an angry bear when its children are threatened. Light seeks only the betterment of others and loves all that seek salvation. Light is thing that brings hope in a dark world, for darkness is only the absence of light.

Light is all that we love and hold dear. It is worth fighting for, nay, dying for. It brings hope to a world full of darkness. It loves those who are broken, it heals the wounded, it destroys evil. That is light.

The Problem of Evil

The other day I was presented with the following argument:

(1) Gratuitous evils probably exist.
(2) Gratuitous evils are incompatible with the God of theism (omnipotent, omniscient, all-good).
(3) Therefore, the God of theism probably does not exist.

After analyzing this argument, I found several errors with this line of thinking. The entire argument rests upon the premise that gratuitous evil exists. Yet, the argument says that gratuitous evil probably exists. It's not definitive. To answer the question whether or there is gratuitous evil, we must first answer the question what is evil? Evil has become a word so flippantly used that its true meaning has been lost.

Evil has been commonly defined as "something that deliberately causes destruction or violates morality." Now its vital to understand the essence of morality. There are two leading theories in regards to morality. Relative morality and absolute morality.

The theory of relative morality is flawed for several reasons. 1. Relative morality can be summed up simply: There is no absolute truth, there is no absolute standard for right and wrong. Yet, notice that this term is said to be true. How then can it be true that there is no absolute truth? It makes no logical sense. 2. C.S. Lewis wrote in Mere Christianity that there is the "Law of Nature" which provides a basic sense of right and wrong. This "moral conscious" is present in every human being. Cultures throughout history have all regarded selfishness and stealing as a vice. Think of it this way: Will an argument of "my truth does not find stealing wrong" be upheld in a court of law? Never! Such an argument is ludicrous. Likewise, an argument of relative morality is ludicrous.

The Constitution of the United States is the absolute law of the land. It was created by the creators of the country to be the Supreme Law. For absolute morality to be absolute, it must be set by the leading authority. But by what authority can morality be set? Standard for morality and decency vary in each culture. Is there a man alive who has the authority to create such a important standard? By what authority can he create such a standard? If man is indeed equal, then we a equally qualified to set the standard for morality. However, since the standard for morality cannot change as was stated earlier, someone, something, more powerful than man must have created the standard for morality.

This leads to an important conclusion. God is the ultimate standard for morality. He defines immorality as anything that breaks His commands. This is called sin. Sin originated not in the Garden of Eden, but at the feet of God. Satan, head of God's angels, grew jealous of God's power and wanted to become like God. Satan sought to overthrow God, yet he was unable to match God's limitless power. Satan fled to earth and tempted Adam and Eve with power, telling them they could be like God Himself. After their rebellion, evil entered the earth.

To understand gratuitous evil, we must first look at the definition of gratuitous. Gratuitous can be defined as "pointless, meaningless, random, or unnecessary." But can evil be "pointless, meaningless, random, or unnecessary?" Evil can be summed up as this: Anything that seeks to rebel against God's absolute power and holiness. Under this definition, can there be gratuitous evil? No! When we choose to rebel against God, we choose evil. Evil is not the random result of eons of time, but the deliberate and purposefully choices of beings with an eternal soul. Therefore, gratuitous evil does not exist and theory that God is a myth falls to pieces.

Lessons from 2009

I've gone through a lot in a year. I look back and I see how I've changed so drastically. I've gone through the fire and come out again, yet I did not return without scars. Nonetheless, I've learned many lessons that others don't learn for years. The following are ten life lessons I learned in 2009.

1. Guard your heart. Your heart is the most precious thing you have, protect it. When you love someone romantically, you give away a piece of your heart. That's something you can never regain. Don't awaken feelings of romantic love until you're ready for marriage. Also, be careful who you trust. It's important to guard yourself from those who don't have your best interests at heart.

2. People wear masks. Everyone wears a mask. There isn't one person alive who doesn't wear a mask in some way. People use masks to hide their fears, their insecurities, and their secrets from the world. Try to identify that mask and see the person behind the mask. Analyze a person's words, actions, and body language to determine their true character.

3. Take off the mask. Show the world the real you. Tell it what you really think. Don't be afraid to stand out and speak up for what's right. When you're around those who honestly care about you, take off the mask. There should be no reason that you should be ashamed to show everything about yourself.

4. Live life with no regrets. When you take off the mask, there should be no deed that would bring you shame. Don't do anything that you would be ashamed of if everyone knew. On the other hand, don't let fear stopping you from living a joy-filled life. Time is precious. Nevertheless describes it best in their song "Live Like We're Alive:" We're here only for a second, but then we're gone when we least expect. So do more than survive, let's live like we're alive.

5. Your legacy is what you make it. People won't remember how much money you had, the size of your house, the popularity you achieved; people will remember for how you made them feel. Influence those around you to do good, encourage them to persevere, and comfort them in tough times. You do these things, you'll have a wonderful legacy.

6. Life is full of pain. It doesn't matter what you do in life, you'll experience pain. Happiness just doesn't work, it's impossible to ignore the pain withing becoming numb to the world around you. How you respond to pain reflects your character. Some people shut down, some gut it out, while others want revenge. Few people reflect and learn from their pain. Never let yourself become numb to the pain. It's better to feel pain than nothing at all. For if you can feel pain, that means you are capable of feeling love.

7. Never take things for granted. It's true, you never know what you have until it is gone. This is true for both material possessions and or the relationships that you have. One day, you can be best friends with someone, the next day worst enemies. Don't take things for granted.

8. Dream big. You have dreams for a reason, pursue those dreams. Find out why God gave you those dreams. Use those dreams for God's glory. Napoleon Bonaparte once said, "Glory is fleeting, but obscurity lasts forever." Even if you make a small difference in the world, it's better than settling for mediocrity. Set aside your fears and stand out. Make a difference in the world.

9. Know Thyself. Learn as much as you can about yourself. Know your strengths, your weaknesses, and your tendencies. Sharpen your strengths and build up your weakness. Understanding your thought process is a small, but necessary step to success.

10. Love. It all comes down to this. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16. Everything in history points towards this verse. It's all about love. The love we have for each other and the love we have for Jesus Christ.

Our future, our legacy is in hands. It's up to us to decide the legacy we will leave on the world. 33 Miles says in their song "One Life to Love," We have one life, one chance, one life to love. Life is too short to care only about yourself. Look around, take a glance into the eyes of the hurting. There's a world out there that's crying out for love. The best way to leave a legacy is to leave a legacy for Christ.

This generation has the opportunity to be a generation like no other. It's up to us to decide how we will change the world. Will we leave a legacy of love or a legacy of selfishness? What legacy will you have? The choice is yours. The time has come. Life starts now.