The Beauty of the Night: Why Our Pain is Necessary for Grace

It’s taken me a couple of years to understand it. That assurance of confident peace God gave me on a dark night, in a cold place, in a world where evil doesn't even bother to hide its face. Why would God grant peace then? Now, finally, I'm beginning to see.

I'm starting to understand the topography of life—its mountains, valleys, and deep caverns. I see more clearly the hard truths of the human condition, our magnetic pull toward sinful pleasures. And because of that, I finally grasp the immense importance of the Gospel. It’s not just a nice story; it’s a story of rescue. A story of deliverance.

I’m grasping the gigantic implications of a God who stops at nothing—not to do everything for us to get us to Heaven, but to stop at nothing so that we have the choice.

That distinction changes everything.

This new understanding reframes our spiritual weapons. I see now why the enemy's hatred and bitterness are rendered so weak, so impotent, the moment we choose gratitude. The moment we choose to love or forgive. That choice is an act of war against the darkness.

But the hardest lesson, the one I'm just now starting to accept, is this: the pains and tragedies of this life are important. They are not meaningless. Without them, how could we ever truly understand mercy? How could we know the real texture of grace? We wouldn’t grasp the necessity of tears or the profound power of empathetic love.

And if we couldn't understand those things, we could never truly know God.

Why? Because God is not a distant deity, immune to our world. He is a God who knows hurt. He is a God who remembers the Cross and has stared into the darkness of a sealed tomb. He is a God who has traversed the depths of Hell and risen to Heaven in glory. Of all beings, He understands the magnitude of our suffering and the importance of our pain.

I’ve been hurt often in life—physically, emotionally, spiritually. But looking back, I see a single theme woven through my story: a theme of confident assurance. A persistent whisper that there is a way out. A way beyond the pain and the tears.

There is a Trumpet sound that will one day break every chain, a battle cry that makes the devil cower, and a God whose single word can vaporize the gates of Hell.

So I understand, just a bit better, what truly matters. Our relationship with God, with ourselves, and with each other. That is of paramount importance. The wishes, expectations, and approvals of others cannot be allowed to seduce me from the love of God, from the passion of my calling, or from my greatest desire: to simply know Him.

I’m writing this while looking out across a field of darkness on a late-night walk, and the same quiet assurance is rising in my heart. It reminds me of a short poem I jotted down a few weeks ago after seeing a friend’s sunrise photo. It isn’t polished, but tonight it feels fitting—like a small lantern for the road.

I hope this is of some encouragement to you, wherever you are and no matter what the devil tells you: you are not alone. 🥰

For those who have been awake through the darkness of the night.
For those who have cried bitter tears in the blackness of the fight.
For those who have born the brunt of attack in the midst of great fright.
For those who have with Jesus stood against the whole of Satan's might.

There is a hope light betwixt the Moon and the Sun.
There is a soothing balm for the wounds from the battles won.
There is a love kiss [wind] that blows in from the East.
There is satisfaction found in God's morning Feast.

For those who cry dry tears in the midst of their soul.
For those who heave cries in the midst of their woe.
For those who crave God's love in the midst of hate.
For those who desire Grace when faced with their fate.

There is a mercy wind in the middle of the storm.
There is a Grace Song that renews the forlorn.
There is a daybreak that spans the Eastern sky.
There is a sun ray that makes a soul fly.

For souls who listen to the flowers as they grow,
For the secrets of nature as a heart comes to know.

It is these hearts that choose to see the Beauty of the Night.
Because without the darkness where would be the light?

There are the chirping birds that bring the news of victory won.
And there is the Savior who rises every morning, robed as the Morning Sun.