I remember talking to a man who had just been released from solitary confinement in prison years ago. He had just been returned to the normal part of prison society. He told me of the misery of solitary confinement. He was sequestered from the rest of the inmates. He had no visitors and no exercise privileges. The size of the room was greatly reduced from his normal cell. All reading materials were no longer accessible. But, when I asked him what was the worse part of solitary, he said, "There were no windows." I found that interesting and pressed him further. He said, "Man, I can’t see nothin’; no birds, no sun, no sky, no trees."
I have found that in life, as long as there is light, there is hope. 1 John 1:5 says, "This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light in him there is no darkness at all." The marvelous thing about having the presence of the Holy Spirit with us is that we have light. It is not about having literal windows to view a passing seagull. But, this fresh wind, bright and bouyant presence, light of life is ever present. Divine light is internally radiant.
We get periodic good new mixed with a heavy dose of bad news from the doctors. In fact, we have daily meetings with the doctors who give us their latest information and interpretation of information. The comment from one doctor was, "You don’t seem to be phased by the news like most people are." I have thought about that as we have prayed for many people completely devastated by information on our floor in circumstances better than ours. We have tried to bring comfort to as many as possible. But, upon reflection, I think that having the light of life gives us a constant hope that is no dominated by present news or circumstances. It is amazing how much the light of Christ brings us up the spirits of those who are filled with it.