Light in a dark place

light-in-a-dark-place

There is a crack, a crack in everything
That’s how the light gets in

+ Leonard Cohen, from Anthem

So where is the crack, the light in Ukraine now?

Over the last few days, I’ve been drawn to walking through the little tunnel in the hillside opposite the farmhouse. It’s the original overflow from the Victorian reservoir that we excavated when we came here 16 years ago.

And today, I join in solidarity with countless people across Ukraine who have taken Psalm 31 from the Hebrew Bible as their prayer of lament. Reading it together in bomb shelters, hospitals, and refugee camps – knowing what it’s like to be under siege.

It is a long Psalm, so here are some excerpts from the New Revised Standard Version:

In you, O Lord, do I seek refuge;
do not let me ever be put to shame;
in your righteousness deliver me.
Incline your ear to me; rescue me speedily.
Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me.

You are indeed my rock and my fortress;
for your name’s sake lead and guide me,
take me out of the net that is hidden for me,
for you are my refuge.

For I hear the whispering of many –
terror all around! –
as they scheme together against me,
as they plot to take my life.

But I trust in you, O Lord,
I say, ‘You are my God.’
My times are in your hands;
deliver me from the hand of my
enemies and persecutors.

In the shelter of your presence you hide them
from human plots;
you hold them safe under your shelter
from contentious tongues.

Blessed be the Lord,
for he has wondrously shown his steadfast love to me
when I was beset as a city under siege.

Be strong, and let your heart take courage,
all you who wait for the Lord.

In this place, may we stand with those in greater darkness. Knowing that the light will come.

~

This week