Imagine you woke up one morning and instead of the sunlight breaking through your window, like you’ve grown accustomed to, all you encounter is darkness. How would you navigate your world? Your living area is familiar, so you could probably adapt to find your way around that space. What about the space outside what is comfortable? How would you reach the grocery store, work, or church? Would you stay stationary and hope that one day your world would have light again? Or would you begin to walk and wander - risking potential harm and danger?

I’ve had a real-life experience like this. I participated in a simulation in Rio de Janeiro, my sight was taken from me and I was challenged to navigate various unfamiliar environments. I spent the next hour and a half running into other people, tripping over random obstacles in my path, bumping against barriers, and using my hands and feet to help form a sense of reality and space. After the simulation was over, it was clear to me that if I had a small flashlight or candle, the majority of my mistakes and errors wouldn’t have occurred.

introduces us to God leading the Wise Men to Bethlehem where the Savior was awaiting. Verses 9 and 10 read, “After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.” After the Wise Men offered their treasures to Jesus, they are warned in a dream not to return to Herod with the news because of the ill-intentions of the king.

This is not the first time God had given his people visible indicators to follow and lead them where He needed them to go. In Exodus 13:21-22, God was leading the Israelites from the slavery and bondage of Egypt and Pharaoh towards the Promised Land. Verses 21 and 22 say: “And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people.”

God illuminated the path of both the Wise Men and Israelites, leading them with light towards His calling and away from the danger of Pharaoh and Herod. I sit and ask the Lord, where are my clear lights? Why am I not given true visible indicators and dramatic signs to help my sense of direction? Where is my protection from dangers and darkness? How do I shift from a life in darkness, like the one I experienced in the simulation, to following the light when I do not have observable luminosity?

I am provided with a clear and concise answer. Psalm 119:105 states, “Your word is a lamp for my feet, and a light unto my path.” The Lord has provided us with a tool to navigate this world of darkness, His word. This instrument equips us with the power to not rely on our own hands and feet to form a sense of reality and space. I am not meant to live a life similar to the one I was exposed to in the simulation - lost, wandering, and in potential danger. When we invest the time towards seeking the truths given to us in Scripture, the Lord provides answers. His answers provide directionality to navigate the darkness we encounter in the world. We don’t have to rely on our own abilities or works. All we have to do is invest in His Word, as we’ve been instructed - this is our pillar of fire, our guiding star.