Share that Light!

I live in darkness, 
a world that snuffs out 
lamps and candles 
wherever it can. 
But your Light dawns 
on those who wait, 
who keep looking up 
not down. And then 

you reveal your plans 
in the network of sky 
and clouds, tree limbs 
reaching and touching,  
your soft light glowing 
on water as well as  
on busy streets and 
through my windows. 

I am commissioned 
to share that light 
while my life melts away  
like a candle, still bright, 
glowing in its designated 
sphere, right here— 
loving you, Yahweh, 
and those around me. 

I was setting the table for Easter dinner, trying to put together a centerpiece that would speak a theme vibrating in my heart: sharing the Light. I love candles, so of course I grabbed some. But this time they were unique, two candles in glass mugs made for me by my daughter years ago, saved for some special occasion. I added other candles in holders that had been revamped. And to evoke what Easter is about, I added a cross-stitched cross (empty, of course) that she had also made—it had accompanied me at my desk in Ferkessédougou where I worked in Bible translation. The cross and candles were set on a cutting board engraved with a heart. The messages were merging in my heart: Jesus died for us all because he loves us, and he is the Light of the world who shines in the darkness. Unaccepted by many, he still became the revered Rescuer of millions of humans, and he expects them to be lights in their dark world too. That includes me. I need to be sharing that light!

Do you dread the turmoil already beginning to boil around us as this year moves forward? Are you still dealing with hurts that have come from people you thought were your brothers and sisters? Are you able to shine like pure light?

Becoming a light that neither flickers nor burns your neighbor is a process of growing in intimacy with Jesus, with the Trinity, and allowing God to refine you so that you can fulfill his purpose for you. This is what Paul wrote to believers in Philippi:

. . . for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. ¹⁴ Do all things without grumbling or disputing, ¹⁵ that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the  midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, (Phil. 2:13-15 ESV)

We just witnessed the solar eclipse, and here in Detroit we were in the path that observed 99.2% totality. When the moon gradually came between earth and the sun there was growing darkness all around, then potent darkness at the moment of full eclipse. But as the moon moved on and the crescent of the sun began to increase in size, the power of sunlight began changing everything around us. It lit up the Detroit River (we were sitting on rocks on its shoreline) as well as the sky. Just a tiny sliver of more sun made a huge difference!

We noticed that because of its effect on the darkness. Which makes me wonder: how can I shine as light that shines in the darkness?

Those verses in Philippians make a strong point: “do all things without grumbling or disputing” so “that you may be” pure, like God wants—then “you shine as lights in the world!” The following verses amplify the positive ways that we should be acting when it is God’s Spirit that is accomplishing the Lord’s purposes through us:

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! (Gal. 5:22 NLT)

When we have allowed the Spirit to produce this fruit in us, we can then do all things without grumbling or arguing.  Gentleness, self-control, peace, patience, kindness—these all moderate our behavior. The point is not that we should never speak out against injustice; no, that is necessary. We are not to be passive, retreating from all interaction in the world. The point is that we should speak and act in a way that reflects the true Light, with loving self-control for instance! Then we “shine as lights in the world.”

A little artifact that I added to the centerpiece was a tree with multi-colored stones as its fruit. This reminds me of the different ways our actions can have impact for good. Our light in this world will be temporary, since our lives here on earth will not go on forever. But it can have effects we don’t even know about. I just read a story about how the kindness of a little boy to another kid who had been bullied prevented him from committing suicide. I know of a case where sharing life with a loving Christian family convinced a university student that relationship with Jesus was possible, something she then wanted to choose. The fruit has all kinds of colors!

And last of all, there is a little clay pot sitting by the candles on the board. What is inside it? I have always related to the imagery of believers being like clay pots being formed by the Potter, each one useful in the way chosen for it. The pot may look empty. But if a person is filled with the Spirit, who cannot be seen, they can be empowered to fulfill the purpose they were made for.

I just finished reading The Challenge of Jesus: Rediscovering Who Jesus Was and Is,” by N.T. Wright. Many sections impacted me powerfully. I love key notes in his summary near the end of the book:

“The way of Christian witness is neither the way of quietist withdrawal, nor the way of Herodian compromise, nor the way of angry militant zeal. It is the way of being in Christ, in the Spirit, at the place where the world is in pain, so that the healing love of God may be brought to bear at that point.”[1]

Yes, we are each in a place where “the world is in pain.” We may be groaning. What to do?

 “The Christian vocation is to be in prayer, in the Spirit, at the place where the world is in pain, and as we embrace that vocation, we discover it to be the way of following Christ, shaped according to his messianic vocation to the cross, with arms outstretched, holding on simultaneously to the pain of the world and to the love of God.”[2]

When we live like that, in communication with and submission to the Spirit, we can grow in our ability to shine Light in the very spot where we have been placed, impacting the darkness. I am a candle in my “designated sphere, right here—loving you, Yahweh, and those around me.”

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[1][1][1] Wright, N.T. The Challenge of Jesus: Rediscovering Who Jesus Was and Is. (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1999), 189.

[2] Ibid., 189-190.