🕯️ Lights—how’s it going?
I came into the world as Light, so that everyone who believes in Me might not remain in darkness (John 12:46).
What is light, anyway? What is our world without the different lights that illuminate it—from our natural lights, such as the stars (and the Big Yellow One we call our sun), the moon, and fire, to our own artificial lighting that is present in our nights?
On the same thread, what is darkness? It’s like cold. There is no such thing really as darkness or cold, it is rather the absence of light or heat (respectively). Darkness and cold are less to do with what is than without it.
Darkness can also be dangerous. Without a light at night, it can be easy to bump into things and hurt yourself. Darkness is where most evil takes place, as it is easier to conceal. As I mentioned in the Holy Saturday blog, the fact that “it was night” when Judas went out was mentioned, not merely to indicate the time of day, but to signal a shift in his direction—from the Light at the table, to the darkness of what he would do outside.
Christ calls Himself the the Light of the world. He comes to bring light, not as a literal human beacon, but to illuminate souls lost in the darkness, and to bring warmth to stone-cold hearts. His Light, for me, is not a flashbang of harsh brightness (although the Ressurection was certainly something) but a lighthouse amidst a stormy ocean that gets brighter and brighter the closer you come to it—till the Light completely surrounds you and you couldn’t imagine how you’ve lived without it all along.
When I call you lights, it doesn’t mean to be bright and happy all the time, or to be blind to all the bad things that happen. It means to being love where there is hatred, to bring peace amidst conflict, and to bring hope to where there is despair. Because this Light isn’t supposed to condemn the world, but to save it (John 12:47; 3:17).
Being a light means recognizing darkness in the world—yet choosing not to let it consume you.
How about you? Have you been a light to the world and those around you lately? Whatever you may answer, I’m not judging. Perhaps your light has been burning low, or you’ve been caught in a storm at sea. But don’t despair. There is always, always a way back into the Light. And no matter how low your lamp burns, there is still a bit of light, as long as you don’t let go out.
I’ll be praying for you, as always, and I hope you’re praying for me, too. Jesus loves you very much, so much more than you and I could ever know. He wants you back, and so do I (even though I’m not exactly sure from what, I just felt prompted to write that). But until then, I’ll see you in the next log.