“Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
See, darkness covers the earth
and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
and his glory appears over you.
Nations will come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.
Isaiah 60: 1-3
“God constantly encourages us to trust Him in the dark.”
A. W. Tozer
(a window in the remains of the once great Cathedral at the Rock of Cashel / County Kerry, Ireland / Julie Cook / 2015)
Piercing the darkness, cutting cleanly as a heated knife through butter, a great light shines…lifting the heavy shadowy cloak which has hung heavy across my shoulders all these many years.
(a window in the catacombs of Christ Church / Dublin, Ireland / 2015)
Stooping beneath the murky weight of obscurity my head lifts as narrowed eyes ache to overcome the brightness filtering into the blackened cell of my heart.
It is as if I’ve spent a lifetime clawing and digging my way to this point, breaking the heavy stones that have sealed me in this often self-imposed tomb of indifference and frustration…as the world has labored, continuing to layer stone upon stone.
(Sligo Abby, Sligo, County Sligo, Ireland / Julie Cook / 2015)
The realization and joy of being saved and finally resting in healing Light is exhilarating…
Yet the knowledge that darkness waits…
It will fight to hold on…
Relentless…
(St Kevin’s Monastery / Glendalough, County Wicklow, Ireland / Julie Cook / 2015
Riding the highs of Light filled days, basking in the swirling warmth, a nagging question of endurance darts in and out of consciousness like a moth seeking a flame.
Longed to be ignored yet annoying and distracting.
Shadows lengthen as a chill fills the air.
Exuberance has worn itself out as giddy filled days are a fading memory.
Can I hold on?
Will It hold on…to me…?
(Sligo Abbey / County Sligo, Ireland / Julie Cook / 2015)
(Timoleague Friary / County Cork, Ireland / Julie Cook / 2015)
The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.
Revelation 21:23
(St. Kevin’s Monastery / Glendalough, County Wicklow, Ireland / Julie Cook / 2015)
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