I Just Didn't Know

In the distant past, a man named Jacob was on a journey and he became stranded by darkness - unwilling to risk proceeding. In that spot, he had a dream from God who made him a promise.

Gen 28:11-16 MKJV
(11) And he came on a certain place, and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. And he took of the stones of that place, and placed them at his head. And he lay down in that place to sleep.
(12) And he dreamed. And behold! A ladder was set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to Heaven! And behold! The angels of God were ascending and descending on it!
(13) And behold! Jehovah stood above it, and said, I am Jehovah, the God of Abraham your father, and the God of Isaac! The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your seed.
(14) And your seed shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south. And in you and in your Seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
(15) And, behold, I am with you, and will keep you in every place where you go, and will bring you again into this land. For I will not leave you until I have done that which I have spoken of to you.
(16) And Jacob awakened from his sleep. And he said, Surely Jehovah is in this place, and I did not know.

We are all on a journey. There are times when it seems to get so dark that we cannot proceed. It's at that point when the Promises of God should become the most visible. When you are just standing there, wondering what to do next, wait. And when God gently reminds you of His promises, take off your shoes because there in the darkness - you stand upon Holy ground. God is in the place with you - and you did not know it.

Many hundreds of years later near that very same spot, a Roman centurion stood on detail - doing his job. He'd done the job many times before, and yet the day was different. The prisoner on 'this' day was different. He didn't complain. He didn't yell. He didn't curse. He didn't whine. He didn't cry. All this despite the most horrific scourging he'd witnessed. And as the sky grew dark, the prisoner said, "Forgive them Father, for they just don't know." The centurion winced at the thought. Surely Jehovah is in this place, and I did not know.