Devotional 12-14-07

Lights

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world.
Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." – John 8:12
When I think about Christmas, one thing that comes to mind is lights. There are lights everywhere – those popular, dangly icicle lights on houses, colorful miniature bulbs on trees, special lights around Central Park in Ashland. They all bring a special radiance to the season.

Of course, as Christians, we recognize that God provided the ultimate light for our world. In the beginning, as recorded in Genesis 1:3 “And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.” He again provided light when He sent his Son to be the Light of the World

While pondering this devotion, this theme of lights kept running through my mind. Then one evening, my car radio was playing “Shine” by Salvador. This was not a coincidence. This is the chorus:

Lord let me shine, shine like the moon
A reflection of you in all that I do
Lord let me be a light for Your truth
Light of the World, I wanna be used to shine for you

How do we shine for God? As Christians, it is our obligation and privilege to bring the light of Christ to others. We do that through our actions each and every day. We don’t know how a smile or a nod of recognition might bring light to another.

At the Laity Sunday service this past October, the participants were given the opportunity to ask someone who brings the light of Christ to them to light a candle during the service. While there were many that I could have asked, I asked my two sons to light my candles. They show me on a daily basis the light of Christ through their actions, words and the love of Christ in their hearts.

A passage from “Praying in the Wesleyan Spirit” by Paul Chilcote expresses what I think God expects of us in showing the light of Christ to others.

“Lord, I pray that my faith in and love for you is both visible and contagious.
I want my light to shine for you.
I want people to see your love in me in such a way that they will turn to you again.”

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank you for sending your Son to light our world. Help us see how we can be a reflection of you not only during the Advent season, but all the year through. Amen.

Shelly Shideler