“Don’t let the darkness get you down. Love will turn your life around. You think you’re lost and then you’re found. Don’t let the darkness get you down.”
This morning as I listened to these lyrics by the group We The Kingdom, my spirit began to lift. For the past two days, a terrible congestion had swept over me like a freight train. I never saw it coming. One minute I was sailing along through life, and the next minute—wham! I was stopped in my tracks. I found myself wondering, Where did that come from?
Life has a way of doing that, doesn’t it? Sometimes the “freight trains” that hit us are physical, like sickness. Other times they arrive as discouragement, disappointment, grief, or unexpected trouble.
King David knew something about sudden shifts in the soul. In 1 Chronicles 15:29, we see David bringing the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem after a previous failed attempt. His heart overflowed with such joy that he leaped and danced before the Lord with abandon. But the same man who celebrated with unrestrained joy also knew the depths of discouragement.
In Psalm 42:5 he writes, “Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me?”
David was honest about his emotions. He acknowledged the heaviness in his heart. Yet he didn’t stay there. Instead, he spoke truth back to his troubled soul. The verse continues: “Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God ” David understood something we all must learn: when darkness presses in, we must gently remind our hearts where our hope truly lies.
Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “Only in the darkness can we see the stars.” But perhaps the simplest words of hope to remember when that unexpected freight train comes barreling through our lives are these: “This too shall pass.” I have said those words so many times they’ve become a habit. In fact, I said them just yesterday—and I may very well say them again tomorrow.
Because seasons change. Storms move on. And the God who carried us yesterday will carry us again today. So when the world feels cold as stone, when it seems you have nowhere to go, lift your head and call His name. The One who loves you never walks slowly toward your pain— He comes running.
Closing Prayer Lord, when the darkness tries to settle over our hearts, remind us that You are still the light that no shadow can overcome. When unexpected troubles arrive like a freight train, steady our spirits and lift our eyes back to You. Help us speak hope to our own souls, just as David did, and choose praise even in the middle of the storm. Thank You, Jesus, for the promise that You are always near, always listening, and always ready to come running when we call. In Your name we pray. Amen.