No one wants to be in the dark. Darkness creates fear, uncertainty, doubts and can be dangerous. The world we live in, in a way is very dark. The darkness increases everyday with rise in moral decadence in the society and hatred in the hearts of men! The darker the world gets, a small source of light would make a difference and be relevant. So no matter how dark the world have become, we are called to bring hope and encouragement to those around us by becoming a light in the darkness. This is not easy to come by, to state the fact! It is hard but not impossible. The question now is how do we become light in the midst of darkness. If you want to know continue reading slowly…
Cf. Isaiah 49:3,5-6
The Lord said to me, ‘You are my servant, Israel,
in whom I shall be glorified’;
I was honoured in the eyes of the Lord,
my God was my strength.
And now the Lord has spoken,
he who formed me in the womb to be his servant,
to bring Jacob back to him,
to gather Israel to him:
‘It is not enough for you to be my servant,
to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back the survivors of Israel;
I will make you the light of the nations
so that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.’
POINTS FOR REFLECTION
Child of God, did you notice what God told his people through the prophet Isaiah? God says: You will not only be my servant, I will make you a light to the nations for the purpose of salvation! To become a light to others, the qualities of light shall be our guide: INTENSITY, FORM, COLOUR, DIRECTION and MOVEMENT.
How to Become a Light in Darkness
1. INTENSITY typically refers to the ‘strength’ of a light source. To be light to others requires strength, it requires power! But you know, knowledge is power. People perish not for lack of food but power (Hosea 4:6). Hence seek knowledge and be empowered! Know your Christian faith well. You do not need to be a theologian or a philosopher to explain your faith, but you need to know the basics and the “whys” of your beliefs. Learn and practice how to share the basic gospel message. Practice sharing your personal testimony with others. Seek opportunities to share your testimony. Your testimony is victory for future battles. No one can dispute or challenge it. For this reason the bible says:
They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony (Rev 12:11)
Time will come when the strength of your light will be put to test by the intensity of darkness around you, never give up! For example, loving others is easy to say but hard to do. It requires strength to truly love and do good. Whenever your ability to love is limited; seek God’s love, patience, and forgiveness and be filled with strength again.
2. Light provides objects with a sense of FORM. The eye is able to recognize objects in terms of shape, size and position. In a world that is speedily becoming formlessness because of moral decadence, we are called to give FORM to things, persons, ideas and beliefs. Know that God calls you to be a light bearer in your unique situation at this time and age. Be faithful to your call and not allow yourself be swayed by the wind of moral decadence. Ask yourself: how can I be Jesus in my family, work, school, church, and community? How can I work with other light bearers around me, so together we can produce an even bigger and brighter light?
3. All light is COLOURED. White light is simply a mixture of all visible wavelengths (colors). The human eye is most sensitive to light in the yellow-green lights than it is to red or blue lights. You are a particular shade in the light spectrum, don’t try to be another colour but be yourself. Maintain your colour. It makes you unique and noticeable. Don’t allow the world change your colour, rather paint the world with your colour! Even if your nature is one of the less sensitive lights, don’t despair or be worried because your colour is unique and is necessary to complete the whole light spectrum! The world is incomplete without you as the rainbow is incomplete without the 7 colours.
4. All lights has DIRECTION. For instance, a bare candle radiates light in all directions. A spotlight radiates light in a very specific direction. In nature most light comes from the sky, from above. So also your light must have a direction. You should direct or point others to Jesus, not to yourself. This was what John the baptist did when the bible says:
Seeing Jesus coming towards him, John said, ‘Look, there is the lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. This is the one I spoke of when I said: A man is coming after me who ranks before me because he existed before me.
5. MOVEMENT in light is generally taken to mean any change in Intensity, Color, Form or Direction. Dynamic changes in all of these qualities take place in nature on a regular basis. This calls you to be dynamic against being rigid and unteachable. Be open to share your opinion with others without being apologetic about it especially when you are asked. Don’t generalise and be judgmental rather be kind and considerate of the views of others. remember that the aim of sharing your view is not to prove them wrong or yourself right, but to bring them closer to God. Consider sharing why you believe in such a way, or how you used to believe the same way as they do, and why you changed.
Movement also include the physical movement of a source, such as the sun, the moon, a searchlight, etc. Movement may be rapid or very subtle, slow and even imperceivable. Remember always you are not the source of the light you bear but God. Hence movement in light, is also a call to follow the Master wherever He leads you. Don’t try to be faster or slower than the master. Wait for the master in prayer when when his movement is imperceivable and you’ll not be confounded.
TASK
Pray psalm 27 now asking the Lord to fill you with strength and power to transform the world beginning from your immediate society.
I Pray For You
May Jesus the Light of the world empower you and fill you with his grace that you may go be his faithful disciple in the battle against the kingdom of darkness in Jesus name. Amen.
