If you do a word lookup in the bible on the word "light" you will find it mentioned over and over. You will see that Jesus is THE light and He is the light that is put in us. You will see that until we find Jesus (the light), we are walking in darkness. But once we discover the light we have to choose to walk in it. We have to choose to let Him be a light unto our path (Psalm 119:105). We have the choice to let it shine so others can see it (Matthew 5:16), or choice to hide it from the world. But again, God knows that you have discovered the light, the truth, and He knows if you are choosing to ignore it or walk in it.
There is something that is expected of us once we receive Jesus in our life...and that is to let His light shine. The very idea that we could receive it and keep it to ourselves goes against God's plan. It is "the good news"...it is the answer to a lost world...it is to be shared. (1 John 1:5-7)
So today as you walk through your day, as people come in and out of your life, as you have small moments of interaction with complete strangers.....will your light shine? Will Jesus be seen in you so brightly that it cannot be hidden (Matthew 5:14), or will you hide the light? I heard someone admit one time that they didn't want to go around telling people they were a Christian because then they felt like if they messed up they would be giving God a bad name or letting everyone down. But I want to say this to anyone who has ever thought that.....Our righteousness is in Jesus, not ourselves. The very idea that we are going to mess up is why we need a savior. Never hide your light out of fear...not fear of what people will think, or fear of not being "perfect". Out of your very love for Jesus do your best to live by His standard, and when you mess up, humble yourself and ask for His grace and mercy to cover you. That is why He offers it! But that is what the world needs to see. They need to see that we have a standard that we are trying to live up to. It is Jesus, it is the bible, it is The Truth! We don't hit the mark every single time, but we don't stop trying either. We live in a fallen world, but we don't use that as an excuse to sin. We try each day to be a better person that we were the day before. Not because we are trying to promote ourselves, but because we are trying to display Jesus at work in our lives. We are only able to do this through surrendering to Him and allowing Him to be our strength.
One of the ways I choose to let my light shine is by letting people see that anything good in me comes from Him and only Him. On my own I have proved way to many times that I can make a mess of anything. I speak truth in love, I'm not ashamed of my faith and I'm humble enough to know that my life has no more value you to that the worst criminal sitting in the worst prison. God's love for me is no greater than His love for them. We ALL need Him...we all need His light in our life! And when I can tell someone that there isn't anything in me that they can't have in them....that IS me sharing His light!
God, Your light is the brightest thing this world has ever seen. Thank You for sharing it with us. Thank You for putting it in us and trusting us to let the world see it. Help us to be proud of our faith and display that light in a way that honors You. Let others be drawn to the light and find something in You that can't be found anywhere else. Your word says that darkness cannot overcome Your light, and that is the truth that brings us hope. Help us offer that hope to the world around us. In Jesus name, Amen
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