shade, shadow, and shadows
“As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste.” – Song of Solomon 2:3
Attended Liberty Bible College in Pensacola, Florida, from 1971-1975. Took one year longer to graduate because of a 9 month missionary internship in Taiwan, Republic of China.
Joined the college choir one year. Bill Caffey was our director. He trained and prepared us to sing a piece by John Sebastian Bach, “I Sat Down Under His Shadow”, which we ended up performing for a local T.V. station.
Found it on You Tube, sung by the Bairstow Luther College Nordic Choir. Sounds almost exactly as Bro. Bill Caffey taught. Here’s the link:
Found it on You Tube, sung by the Bairstow Luther College Nordic Choir. Sounds almost exactly as Bro. Bill Caffey taught. Here’s the link:
If the link doesn’t work, just go to You Tube, and at the search thingy, type, “I sat down under his shadow.”
Now, about 50 years later, 70 years old, and living in the Marianas Islands almost 8 years, I find myself often singing that Bible verse.
Out here it’s Pacific island tropical climate. 365 days out of the year, the temperature is 82-83 degrees F. That’s why I can grow veggies in my garden year round, even during our rainy season.
Out here it’s Pacific island tropical climate. 365 days out of the year, the temperature is 82-83 degrees F. That’s why I can grow veggies in my garden year round, even during our rainy season.
The first 4 years living here was quite difficult walking outside under the noonday sun – seemed to always be walking from one shady spot to the next. Didn’t need to exercise to work up a sweat, just walked out in the sun for ½ hour, and my shirt would be drenched with perspiration. Couldn’t even sleep at night without the air-con on full blast. No longer use an air conditioner, but I do use an electric fan quite often.
So, here on Rota, been walking a lot, sometimes several miles at a time, in the middle of the day. Fortunately there’s more nature here than people, so there’s loads and loads of big trees of all sorts all along the sides of the road, everywhere. That tropical sun beats down, and I often take plenty of rest breaks – always under the cool shadow of a big tree, always start singing my 1st tenor part, “I sat down under his shadow with great delight!” That’s when God, touches my heart, reminding me of the cool calm rest under his shadow. And yet, he is “the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning (James 1:17).”
Under his shadow, in the shade are one thing, while “in the shadows” is something entirely different.
God is light and in him is no darkness.
If we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his son cleanses us from all sin. And, our fellowship is not just with each other, but also with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
If we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his son cleanses us from all sin. And, our fellowship is not just with each other, but also with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
King David said, “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, because God is with me.”
Ashamed to admit it, but I’ve veered off the path and walked in the shadows, thinking I can jump back into the light at any time (actually thinking I’m parallel to the path of light). All the while, the path in the shadows skews off, ever so slightly, into darker shadows.
The enemy of our souls is not limited by time as we are. So, our miniscule deviations off the path of light, which we are intended to take, go unnoticed. 10 years go by, and a person ends up in complete darkness. What happened to all that sweet fellowship?
Our Abba Father is with us wherever we go, whether in the light or in the darkness. Thing is, we are limited by time, and we are completely out of our element in darkness.
As children of God, we are unable to thrive in spiritual darkness. Our adversary, the devil, can do anything he wants to us in the darkness, playing us any which way (on his own timeline).
All that to say this – let’s avoid walking in the shadows (metaphorically speaking) at all costs, and make every effort to walk in the light. With the power of the Holy Spirit, the word of God, and fellowship in the body of Christ, we can not only be a greater blessing to all, but also wage war with the kingdom of darkness more effectively.
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