Emanate light

There is something about light, the right light, that is so attractive. I love to drive in the country with the light behind me, illuminating the surroundings in awesome ways. I also love the light on Portage Lake in the fall when the far shore reflects the sun off of the trees and cabin windows like a fire lit by God hand. Light can be attractive, it can be reassuring at night, it can be helpful in getting to the bathroom in the dark -- light can be a very good thing.

BUT light can be blinding and even disconcerting. Directors have long used lighting to make scenes for horror movies. Alfred Hitchcock was a master of using light to create drama and fear. Lights shined directly in your eye can actually blind you, at least temporarily. Light can be a weapon used against prisoners to produce anxiety and sleeplessness.

So what sort of light is talked about in the Bible when Jesus says, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.” Jesus could have been a blinding light like on Paul's trip to Damascus (acts 9:3), or a light of transfiguration or supernatural power (Matt. 17:2) But I think Christ embodied a light that was so attractive that others were drawn to it, a light based in pure love and selfless passion. Jesus was fully God and capable of great power but he chose to model the life of a servant which proved to be the most attractive light of all.

So - emanate the light of Christ to all around you. Do not do but be a light of love and compassion. Don't take on a new project or good deed but emanate the light of Christ where you are and in what you do. Allow others to be attracted to that light and ask you about it's origins. Sorry but it might take years of being light for others to see it, so you better start today. And by the way, you will probably never win a medal or get any notoriety for this -- but do it anyway for the father.

Happy Easter,
Dave