Austin Miles was an amateur photographer. He discovered he could read his Bible in the red lighting of a darkroom. He would often peruse Scripture while he waited for his pictures to develop.
On March 1912, while awaiting the photo developing process to finish, Miles picked up his Bible. It fell open to John 20. There, he read about how Mary Magdalene came to visit the tomb of Jesus in the garden. As she looked into the sepulcher, she was troubled because He was not there. The Lord, standing nearby, spoke to her, and she recognized Him. Her darkness instantly dissipated.
Immediately, Miles imagined himself in the garden with Mary and Jesus on that bright Sunday morning, witnessing all that had happened. When his mind returned to the task of developing photographs in the darkroom, he was tightly gripping his Bible.
In the inspiration of that moment, he wrote a poem, the words and phrases coming quickly. That same evening, he composed the music for it, and in doing so gave the world one of our most loved hymns, “In the Garden”.
I come to the garden alone,
While the dew is still on the roses,
And the voice I hear falling on my ear,
The Son of God discloses . . .
And He walks with me, and He talks with me,
And He tells me I am His own,
And the joy we share as we tarry there,
None other, has ever, known!
He speaks and the sound of His voice,
Is so sweet the birds hush their singing,
And the melody that He gave to me,
Within my heart is ringing . . .
And He walks with me, and He talks with me,
And He tells me I am His own,
And the joy we share as we tarry there,
None other, has ever, known!
Some of you are in a dark place right now. Just as Miles was inspired in his darkroom about how Mary Magdalene’s night turned to day, God might be illumining you as He never has before. If you are struggling through the valley of the shadow of death, God can help you trace the rainbow through the rain.
It was during King David’s darkest days that he wrote praise from the gloomy depths of the cave of Adullam. He was on the run, escaping danger in Gath (1 Samuel 22). In those dismal circumstances, David was inspired to write four hymns, including Psalm 142. God might be inspiring you to give Him praise from your own personal cave, and in doing so, bless others, just as David’s song does to this very day.
Toward the end of his life, C. Austin Miles often said that he would make it through another northeastern year if he could just get through the month of March. He confessed that he did not like the howling winds of those blustery days. Oddly enough, he passed away on March 10, 1946. That dark season of his life ushered him into the ultimate light of joy in Heaven. God can turn your darkness into a sundrenched day.
