Catfish Thought He Could Drive In The Dark

Everyone has a nickname, but some names that are better than others. Nick names like Bubba or Bogger; Wingnut or Skeeter hardly scratch the surface of names that kids get labeled with. Some folks earn their nicknames, while others are tokens of endearment. I don’t know how Catfish got his name, but he definitely made my list of “interesting people”.

 

Catfish worked nightshift in a sawmill. He was part of the clean up crew after the last shift. He refused to use tools that anyone else had touched, so he had his own tools. He kept wet gloves on his hands at all times. When the gloves began to get dry, he retrieved a second pair that he kept soaking in water. But a stranger habit resulted in a stern reprimand from his boss.

 

His boss started the conversation with a question, “Catfish, Is it true that you drive to work without your turning on your headlights?”

 

“Yes, it is!” Catfish nodded as he spoke.

 

“But Catfish, you work the night shift. It’s dark going and coming at those hours.”

 

“Yes, it is!” Catfish nodded again.

 

“But Catfish, that’s really dangerous. Why would you do that?”

 

“Cause I don’t want anyone to see me coming.” Catfish tried to explain.

 

His boss tried to convince Catfish that the danger was not in “being seen”, but in “not being seen”. But everything the concerned boss said ran off “like water off a duck’s back.” Now that’s a saying Catfish would love. Nothing the boss said soaked into Catfish’s brain. Catfish continued to inch his way to work and home from work with only the moonlight to guide him.

 

Until one moonless night an 18-wheeler slammed into Catfish’s truck. Fatal? I’m sorry to say it was. Eccentric? I’ll let you decide.

 

Catfish thought he could navigate in the darkness. His fear of being seen; his fear of discovery kept him in the dark.

 

Still Trying to Navigate in the Dark?

Jesus said that sinners are like that too, they want to avoid the spiritual light that shows their sins, so they remain in the darkness.

 

John 3: 20-21nlt “They hate the light because they want to sin in the darkness. They stay away from the light for fear their sins will be exposed and they will be punished. 21 But those who do what is right come to the light gladly, so everyone can see that they are doing what God wants.”

 

Path to Peace

Often people don’t seem to understand that the light that illuminates their sins also illuminates the path to peace. Sometimes, they neglect their Bible reading because they know God will deal with their heart to forgive someone that hurt them. Or they know He’ll talk them about tithing or purity or gossip. But His way is their path to peace and freedom.

 

Luke 1:78-79nlt “Because of God’s tender mercy, the light from heaven is about to break upon us, 79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide us to the path of peace.”

 

Don’t cover it with a Blanket of Darkness

Catfish thought he could do just fine in the dark, but it finally caught up with him. We think hiding our sin, our little indiscretion erases it, but it only gives it a breeding place like yeast. Yeast and sin love to grow in the dark.

 

Proverbs 21:2nlt “People may think they are doing what is right, but the LORD examines the heart.”

 

Values can be upside down. So evaluate your life in the light of God’s Word instead of comparing your values to someone else.

Luke 11:35 nlt “Make sure that the light you think you have is not really darkness.”

 

Embrace the light.

My prayer is: “Father, show me any area in my life where I am living in darkness. Reveal your truth in areas where I have been deceived or I believe a lie. Show me truth.”

 

John 8:12 nlt “ Jesus said to the people, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t be stumbling through the darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”

 

Help me to line up my life, my actions and my attitude with your truth.

Ephesians 5:8nlt “For though your hearts were once full of darkness, now you are full of light from the Lord, and your behavior should show it!”