Shine

FOCUS READING 1

Isaiah 60:1-3 (NRSV)

Arise, shine; for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
For darkness shall cover the earth,
and thick darkness the peoples;
but the Lord will arise upon you,
and his glory will appear over you.
Nations shall come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

FOCUS READING 2

Matthew 5:14-16 (NRSV)

'You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hidden. 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.

DAILY BYTE

This week, you have read in Exodus about how God, through power and grace, drowns the things that enslave us.

And you have heard that we work in partnership with God, as God works against evil and brings greater good into the world.

The images of God that we see in Exodus are God as a pillar of fire and a cloud that lights up the night.

We also read in Matthew today that as people who believe in God, we are the light of the world! So, this tells me that for God’s good, freeing power to be visible even to evil, we must be like clouds there with the darkness, lighting up the night.

As we let Christ shine through us, that is what happens – we are able to light up the night, walking with others through difficult, chaotic, even deathly times – into the new life that God has for us.

And so, at the end of this week, ask yourself, what does God need to drown in your life, so that you can walk into a new life? An old pattern? A suffocating habit? A seemingly unconquerable addiction? A vain attitude about how great you are? A self-reliant pompousness that says, I don’t need God to succeed – or anyone else for that matter? A laziness that prioritizes other things that aren’t really fulfilling over whatever it is that God wants from you? What needs to drown so that you can live – and not just be alive in the bodily sense – but shine?

PRAY AS YOU GO

God, I want to light up the darkness in this world. Help me to let go of the things that keep me from living the promised new life you have for me. Help me to stand confidently, as you slowly wash my old habits, patterns, and fears away. Teach me to accept the power of your grace. Let me shine! Amen.