Be the Light
This is year 2 for me using the Christian Planner. I love a paper planner and this one hits all the marks for me. Last year, I just used the planner, but this year, I’m adding lots of stickers and filling in the vision board and goal sheets. I ordered some extra stickers for my water container….seems like a “thing” when I look at my sons’ water jugs, so I thought I’d get in on that, too!
One of the stickers I chose was “Be the Light”. Thursday night Candlelight service at Camp Mowana always ended with a song that touched my heart with our call to Be the Light. “You are the light of the world….so shine, shine, shine where you are….you are the light of the world. I’ve sent that message to my sons and others many times in cards, emails, texts and more. Our church newsletter for Bethel Lutheran Church is BeTheLight. Be the Light finds its way into my life with frequency, so I thought it was a good sticker to put out there.
I decided to take this Word of the Week opportunity to explore what Be The Light means. What does the Bible say about it and what does it mean for us in our daily lives?
Matthew 5 gives us the lyrics for my Mowana song and the familiar This Little Light of Mine.
14 You are like light for the whole world. A city built on top of a hill cannot be hidden, 15 and no one would light a lamp and put it under a clay pot. A lamp is placed on a lampstand, where it can give light to everyone in the house. 16 Make your light shine, so that others will see the good that you do and will praise your Father in heaven.
In Philippians 2, Paul writes 14 Do everything without grumbling or arguing. 15 Then you will be the pure and innocent children of God. You live among people who are crooked and evil, but you must not do anything that they can say is wrong. Try to shine as lights among the people of this world, 16 as you hold firmly to[a] the message that gives life. Then on the day when Christ returns, I can take pride in you. I can also know that my work and efforts were not useless.
Our call is to shine a light that draws others to Christ. How many times have you heard the criticisms of others saying that someone’s behavior or words sound hypocritical when put up against their claims of being a Christian? The light being shone is pushing people away from the notion of Christianity, not toward it. It makes me cringe when someone on social media or a politician claims to be a Christian, yet uses language that is judgmental or condescending or exclusive.
How do we Be the Light in our social media, all about me driven society? I think it is a matter of getting back to basics. I know as I mother I have said these things in one form or another to my sons, as well as heard them from my own mother, and while they might seem cliché, the truth in these statements is a guide to help us to Be The Light.
If you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything. This is the old version of the reminder I gave my students: Before you speak, THINK. Is it True, Helpful, Inspirational, Necessary, Kind? Often we say things that may meet the true requirement, but then we stop
THINKing there. Helpful, necessary and kind may times don’t follow. Kids often tell things that are true to another friend (like the not so nice thing another friend said about them), but all it does is start an argument or hurt feelings. Those types of revelations don’t meet the helpful and necessary criteria. Sometimes we want to say something because we are so shocked or concerned about something, but while it is true, don’t forget to complete the rest of the THINK criteria before you post and comment or call or share. The Share button on Facebook is just too easy to click. THINK first.
Would you do what you are doing if Jesus stopped by and saw you? My mom used to say this to me and I used it to its full advantage while raising my boys not only having them consider Jesus’s presence in a situation but also a favorite teacher or cherished friend. While it seems like a trick of the trade for parents bordering on invoking guilt, Ezekiel 8:12 tells us of how the people of God were worshiping idols in dark rooms thinking God can’t see them. In Psalm 10 it says, The wicked think, “God isn’t watching us! As humans, we can become so distracted from our relationship with God, we see him as far away and not really with us. Sometimes we need to be reminded that God is right with us and wanting us to remember that his relationship with us is intimate.
See each person as a precious child of God. Everyone. Not one person better than another. That means the person that is driving you crazy at work or the person who sees things completely
opposite from you is just as special and important as you are. Sometimes this is a really hard one. We want so desperately to lash out or put people in their place and argue with them enough times that they will “come to their senses” and see your, obviously correct, point of view! Taking a breath, remembering and visualizing their place with God that is the same as mine, helps me speak with tender words or lead with a more kind approach or be quiet altogether.
Watch what you say and how you say it. “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear” (Ephesians 4:29) Remember putting something on social media is like shaking out a feather pillow into the wind. You can never pick up all the feathers. Once it is seen, it can’t be unseen, and once it is shared, the viewership is multiplied in ways we can’t imagine.
Seems simple, right? I have often said that we each, at some point, are the only Bible someone will read. Be The Light is that reminder to us. What am I putting out in each moment of the day that reflects Christ? Our lights are to illuminate Christ, not ourselves. Be the person others rely on to be that foundation of kindness and truth and love. We won’t get it right all the time. We’ll fall victim to Satan’s distractions. We’ll say things we shouldn’t. But hopefully, that will be recognized as not the norm for each of us and a chance to show grace when wrong.
Be the Light means to let people see Christ and God’s love in you so they “will see the good that you do and praise your Father in Heaven”. And just like Ezekiel giving God's message to people who had wandered so far away from Him, it may seem that no one cares or even tries to act right when you are. It may seem futile. That's ok...do it anyway. Shine, shine, shine where you are. Be the Light.
