By the Way: ‘The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it’

By Kristy Reimers-Loader on February 1, 2025.

Every spring I look forward to the subtle change in daylight following the long, dark nights of winter.

Today, when the world feels chaotic and the news is full of dark proclamations, I yearn for light to lift my inner gloom. Light and darkness. Of the many references in the Bible to these, my personal favourites are in Genesis and the Gospel of John.

In Genesis, it’s written how God said, “Let there be light,” and out of the formless void, light appeared, and God, seeing it was good, proceeded to create day and night. Genesis (and the rest of the Torah) was thought to have been written during the Babylonian captivity following the conquest of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar.

It was a dark time in the history of God’s people; Jerusalem had been sacked, homes and families torn apart, and the future seemed bleak. In shock, the people wondered how this could have happened, and why? Were they God’s chosen or not?

In response, the authors of Genesis were anxious to tell the stories of God’s promises and past blessings, and to build on those historical narratives to bolster the peoples’ courage and hope until the day they were free to return to their homeland.

Which brings us to the opening verses of John’s gospel, wherein we read of the Word of God that was Christ from the beginning of time: “What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.”

I take comfort and hope from this. That God is present in both light and dark times, but of the two, it’s God’s intention that the light should ultimately prevail over the darkness. This, then, is my prayer: That you will find the light in your life, that it will help you hold onto hope through your own dark times, and that it will inspire you to be a light for others in times of uncertainty and unrest.

Chaplain Kristy Reimers-Loader

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