It's safe to say that every one of us has experienced the loss of courage by the daunting presence of shadows. Whether it's slowly opening the door of a dimly lit hallway into an unfamiliar room, or the way that incandescent light falls from the heated street lamps above as you walk back to the hotel room, we can all identify with how shadows like to toy with our psyche.
There are other examples, though, that are not so intrinsically bad as to play tricks on the mind. Think of lying on the beach underneath the shade of a palm tree while sipping an ice-cold, exotic beverage. Perhaps your drink came with an umbrella in it (another miniature version of shadow casting). Or say when plumes of clouds feathering the sky above block the sun in such a way that the light rays burst forth insisting on illumination. A beautiful sight. Notice the next time you hear wind blowing through the trees how the shadows respond with a dance bouncing from cement floors to brick walls and so forth. There’s almost a rhythm to the way they move.
Even still, the influence of shadows have found their way into our communication. Colloquialisms have evolved in languages which employ the use of shadows to help describe a particular essence or image. Consider these questions:
Have you ever lived in someone’s shadow?
Has anyone ever lived in yours?
Have you ever been frightened by your own?
Has a stranger ever approached you from the shadows?
Have you ever felt like a shadow of your former self?
Have you ever had shadows beneath your eyes?
Have you ever believed beyond a shadow of a doubt?
All of these phrases express different concepts common to man. Surely we can all relate to most of them. I for one can relate to all of them, especially the one about being frightened by your own shadow. I’m telling you, slowly opening the door into that dark room really played some nasty tricks on my mind! It's true.
So this last week, meditating on these ideas, I’ve been quickened with two familiar scriptures:
"Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me." - Ps. 23:4
and
"He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty." - Ps. 91:1
Tsel (Strong's H6378) is the Hebrew word translated "shadow". Tsel can also be translated as "shelter" (Gen 19:8), "protection" (Num. 14:9), and "shade" (Sgs. 2:3). With these two verses as a backdrop, in the context of Tsel, here are some thoughts regarding shadows.
IN ORDER TO CAST A SHADOW THERE MUST FIRST BE A SOURCE OF LIGHT
“In the beginning…” Before the world was ever formed out of chaos and established as a functioning, God-sustained creation there was always the light of God’s face. He is light. He always illuminates. That’s not to say that darkness (unknowing, uncertainty) is bad and that it doesn’t serve a purpose in the end. Quite the contrary, darkness serves the purpose of God by being a predecessor to revelation. In creation, God set a precedent by starting with darkness and then saying, “Let there be light.” Yet, even before He said those specific words light already existed in the form of God Himself. The creation account clues us in on how God reveals Himself within the constructs of creation. As we progress from darkness (unknowing, uncertainty) into light (revelation) we are being exposed to deeper and wider dimensions of God’s very nature. Ultimately, we must remember that even darkness serves God.
SHADOWS CAN BE DECEPTIVE ILLUSIONS OF WHAT ACTUALLY IS
Imagine with me if you will for just a moment the scene David describes in his timeless song, the 23rd Psalm:
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil, for You are with me. (NASB)
I picture a landscape similar to what you find in Bozeman, MT. Surrounding the smooth landscape of this mid-western city are the rugged outlines of mountainous terrain. It is such an impressive sight to see the stark contrast; flat earth meets high peaks. When confronted with such a presence it's difficult to imagine anything bigger.
I visualize walking through the valley of the shadow of death (death of dreams, vision, hope, belief) because of the mountains looming over me, covering the ground I walk on, swallowing up the warmth of sunshine from reaching my face. My only hope is remembering this is only a shadow. And isn’t that part of their clandestine nature? Shadows can give the impression that something is more present than it actually is. From this psalm I am comforted by the words “walking through”. This implies motion. This signals the heart with, “Don’t worry. This is not your home. You’re a traveler here, a mere passenger.” Reminiscent of what the great Sir Winston Churchill so felicitously stated, “If you’re going through hell, keep going.”
The real challenge when overshadowed by an obstacle like uncertainty, e.g. not knowing your own identity in God, doubting what you've known to be true of God, having to make decisions that will affect life beyond your own, is to resist being paralyzed by fear. There is victory on the other side of fear, however, because the awareness of an even greater Presence lifts hopelessness from the heavy-laden. Eugene Petersen paraphrases the Psalmist’s words this way:
Even when the way goes through Death Valley,
I'm not afraid when you walk at my side. (The Message)
Being yoked together with Christ shifts the weight from our shoulders alone and puts it on the back of Him who is fitted to carry such a heavy load. Though the way takes us through Death Valley we are not alone. We were never even going to be.
PERCEIVED IN THE LIGHT OF THE MOST HIGH, SHADOWS WILL NOT ILLUDE US. THEY WILL LEAVE US.
What is more lofty than a mountain top? What has the ability to cast a longer, wider shadow? Is such a thing even possible? The answer is a resounding YES. The Most High is He who is enthroned in the heavens yet still takes the time to walk by my side on this side of eternity. It is here, in the shadow of His wings, that I find shelter, protection, and shade in its purest form. No longer am I threatened by the dangerous stretches of the narrow way, that road which must pass through the valley of the shadow of death. Nor do I accept any illusions that suggest my journey with Jesus is subject to the confines of this world. That would be contradictory to what Jesus taught us:
"Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be taken up and cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it will be granted him.” Mark 11:23
Jesus taught us to look right at the mountains of disbelief and with a word cast them into the sea of forgetfulness. He granted us His same authority to disarm their powers of influence not from just a horizontal plane but from a vertical horizon. Self-doubt, fear, timidity, and their cohorts all seem to be insurmountable in the moment (and they will come). However, they MUST flee away like the shadows that they are when Jesus dawns on His beloved. In His presence we don't have to go around the mountain or even go over it, we get to move it.
In Summary
A friend of mine told me once some time ago, “Andrew, you don’t have to walk in any one else’s shadow except the Father’s”. Sobering words for someone who did look to others, who did compare himself, who so desperately wanted to do things “the right way” that it clouded his vision from perceiving THE WAY. And yet, it was alright for me to stumble through those seasons of life because the Father gave me permission to fail. Failure in God's kingdom isn’t stumbling, it’s stopping. When we stumble there is still motion. When we stop, though, we’re refusing to move forward in the journey. By doing so we cut ourselves off from the One who knows which way to go. The essence of stopping is just my rebellion. It denies God His paternal right to cover me, to offer me His shelter, His protection, His shadow. That in essence is His mercy. This I must cling to. This I must continue to believe beyond a shadow of a doubt.
No words describe the shadow which God casts upon His beloved better than what the psalmist wrote. Let these words encourage you again.
Your love, LORD, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies.
Your righteousness is like the highest mountains, your justice like the great deep.
You, LORD, preserve both people and animals. How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!
People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights.
For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light.
Ps 36:4-6, NIV
In His Shadow,
Brother Andrew
