Brave Enough

Yes, I'm still re-reading Amanda Gorman's poem.  I think it's safe to  say that this is not the last post I'll write about it.

The first time I heard it, the lines that I had to write down - right that moment - and that I quoted on Facebook were:

For there is always light,

if only we're brave enough to see it.

If only we're brave enough to be it.

As followers of Christ, we know that there is always light.  And it is true, and part of our confession, that sometimes we do not see it, and sometimes we wait for someone else to be it.  True, isn't it?

Interesting to me the word she uses to describe our action in the lines - brave.  She calls for our bravery.  What does it mean to be brave enough to see the light?  To BE the light?

Christ knew we would be afraid.  And he cautioned us to not hide the light:

“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven. 

(Matthew 5:14-16)

In John, in one of the I am statements, Jesus says he is the light of the world.  That helps me understand that the light inside of me is created by God.  The light that I need to be brave enough to share is God's light.  And Christ told us that the rule of life we must follow is to love God and to love our neighbor (I'm paraphrasing). 

So, we are called, aren't we, to be the light of love?  Are we brave enough to love?  Not just the family member, not just the friend, not just the people we like, but the people who don't love us back?

Next time, we'll talk about the hill we climb, and what that means to me. 

Perspectives: Light in Darkness

I took this picture as I approached a church building for a meeting one evening. The church is not in a city - it's in an area of West Virginia that has fewer street lights, fewer lights from other buildings. It sits close to the road but set back a little bit, on a rise. It's a beautiful place.

As I approached it, I was struck by the light shining at the door. A light in darkness. I took the picture because I was convinced that this is what a church should be - a light in darkness.

How can the church do that? How can we, as part of the body of Christ, as individuals, shine that light?

Imagine, for a moment, being in darkness - whether real darkness, or the darkness of being lost, being afraid, being hurt, being alone, and finding a light. What does it mean to those in darkness to have the darkness lifted? What has it meant for you? What will it mean for others?

Perspectives: Let your light shine

You are the light of the world.  A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstands, and it give slight to all in the house.  In the same, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.  (Matthew 5:14-16)

I have two images to show you today. One is of a glass of water. I think it's amazing how the light shines through it. You don't really see the candle that is behind it, but you see the beauty of the candle, shining through the water. In some ways, I think this is how we should shine for God.

The candle is beautiful. Something about the water adds a different beauty to it. You don't really see the water, but the water is part of the beauty that you see.

We are made in the image of God. When we open ourselves to serve God, God's light shines through us, and the result is beautiful to behold.

Light

You are the light of the world.  The primary function of light is not to be seen, but to allow others to be seen as they are.

I heard that at a meeting a few weeks ago.  What do you think? 

The primary function of light is not to be seen. That's true - we don't actually see light. We see what reflects the light. So our function as the light of the world is not to be seen.  As the adage goes, "It's not about us."

Our function as light is not to be seen but to allow others to be seen as they are. At first that sounds like our function is to illuminate the sins in others. It sounds frightening and judgmental - I don't want to be illuminated as I am. But that's not what it means - it means to illuminate people as they are, and what they really are, underneath it all, is beloved children of God. We are to illuminate that in people - they way God sees people - the who they really are. 

We can do that.

LIght

The word for today is light.

I've written about light before (probably more than once), but here is an early (in the life of the blog) post about light.

Arise. Shine.

Arise.
Shine.
Your light has come.
The Glory of the Lord has risen upon you.

Do you see a world covered in darkness?
Do you cry as children are shot?
As they go hungry?
Do you weep over the lack of justice in the world?
Is your life surrounded by darkness?

The Lord will rise above you.
Open your hearts and see God's Glory.
Arise. Shine.
Your light has come.

The light of the Lord shines upon the world
Through you.
Within you.
In all that you do for God.
You are the light.

Nations shall come to your light.
Kings to its brightness.
Shine, and see the world transformed.
Arise. Shine.

Lift up your eyes and look around.
See the darkness scatter at God's light.
Children will come to the dawning.
Those who were scattered will join together.
Light upon light.
God's light shining.
Arise.  Shine.

In God there is no darkness at all.
In God, there is light.
In you, there is God's light.
The love of God will push back the darkness when you
Arise.  Shine.

Inspired by Isaiah 60:1-4

Light

 

Taken on grounds of winery at Biltmore


 To summarize the plot of the move Tangled -- a take-off of the Rapunzel fairy tail -- a princess was born in the kingdom.  To celebrate her birth, the Queen and King released a floating lantern.  Soon after that (and unrelated to the lantern), the princess is abducted.

Each year, on the princess's birthday, her parents release a floating lantern.  As they do, all of the inhabitants of the kingdom release one as well.

The floating light was released first in celebration and love, and then in love and grief, and with the hope that the lost princess will see the light and return home.

God calls us to let our light shine -- as his light shines.  The light shines so that others can see their way home, so that we will encourage each other and witness to each other.  God calls us back in love and grief at our loss -- and with the hope that we will see the light and return.  Our light shines for the same reason.

Let your light shine!

Let is Shine

If you have some time, go read the Bishop's Blog post, This Little Light of Mine. And then come back.

Hey, thanks for coming back!

What is my light? How do I let it shine?

We talked in Disciple this evening about what we can use to witness to God in the world.

Those might be kind of the same question. We live in a world of darkness in which the light of Christ is necessary in order to chase away the darkness. We have been given light, and we are to allow it to shine -- to be a witness to and for God in the world.

Have you ever seen the the scene in one of the Harry Potter movies where everyone is on the grounds, holding up their wands, with just the tip of the wand illuminated? I can't really remember which movie it is, but the action starts with just one person holding up one tiny light. It can barely be seen. But then another person adds his light, and another, until the entire crowd is holding up a light. The evil is held at bay; night is turned into day, almost, in the power of these lights.

God's light is like that. We hold up our lights, shine them forth, and the darkness is transformed.

What is your light? How do you let it shine?