On the surface, the beautiful green woods look like ordinary woods.

Yet a hidden danger lurks on the forest floor.

Sinkholes. Literally  hundreds of them.

One of those sinkholes is where I enter, and traverse underground to see the cave, or at least a part of it.

The descent is hundreds of steps down, along a dark, narrow– sometimes very narrow–  man-made stair structure. The hand rails are wet from water dripping down. I walk slowly, so I don’t slip.

The lady behind me is thankful I am in front of her… and I am thankful someone is walking in front of me in the barely visible passageways.

I glance down. The depth is staggering.

God isn’t given credit for the beauty of the place… but in my mind, I am thinking it, and marveling and wondering.

I am also thinking of the curiosity of man to come down to the depths of the earth to explore and wander. This curiosity, too, is a God-given gift.

We follow the guide, as she leads us along the path and end up in a large “room”, and sit down on long wooden benches. It is dark, and damp, and the people gather in, sit down, grateful for a few minutes to rest.

The guide shares a few tidbits about the history of Mammoth Cave, and answers questions. We learn about the creatures that live in the cave, such as the crickets that look like spiders and the fish that have no eyes.

The place is dimly lit, but lit enough to walk and notice the crevices, textures and cracks along the walls and ceiling.

Then she tells us she will turn the lights off.

She asks us to be very, very quiet. She wants us to experience how dark and how quiet a cave can be… and to imagine if we were lost, how would we find our way out? She says… don’t panic or worry. Just listen to the silence and notice the stillness.

Over a hundred people get very quiet. Then, the lights are switched off.

It is dark. We look around. It is difficult to see the person sitting beside you.

After a few moments, she speaks and tells us she will turn on a light so that we may see.

Instead of switching all the lights back on, however, she turns on one tiny little lighter.

Gasp. We share one collective gasp.

That one little lighter lights up the entire cave room, lights it up enough so that we can truly see each person in the room, and the shadows moving on the walls.

It was dark, but now there is light.

The guide tells us that one little light is big enough to light the way out of the cave… to solid ground. To the green growing earth. To life above the depths of hollow darkness…to hope.

One little light. Is big enough. To light the way. To illuminate utter darkness.

No matter how small a life may seem, or may be perceived… a  little light is big enough, in His hands.

Have you ever felt too small, not gifted enough… or simply just not enough? How has the Father spoken to you in those moments?

{** More on Mammoth Cave:  It is the largest cave system in the world, with over 350 miles of cave passageways underground in the state of Kentucky. It is also located on a sinkhole plain, in the Mammoth Cave National Park. Worth a visit!}

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Linking with Laura at Playdates with God:

with L.L. Barkat at In, On, and Around Mondays:

and with Jen and the Soli Deo Gloria sisters: