Luke tells of a man whom Jesus cured of leprosy (Luke 17). This man then let his light shine amidst the darkness of ingratitude and forgetfulness by giving thanks and worshipping. Though I know nothing more about him, he remains a light to me.

John tells us of a woman who took the light of Christ into the darkness of her village even though her own life seemed a mess (John 4). Her ‘shining’ unto them resulted in many coming to faith in Jesus. She also, is a light to me.

In another place (John 6), John tells us of a small boy who unselfishly gave his lunch to Jesus. The light of his generosity resulted in the feeding of 5,000 hungry souls. To this day, he remains a light to me.

Acts chapter 6 & 7 tell how Stephen was murdered by men angered by his preaching. Though his life was taken from him, his light was not put out. On the contrary, his sacrifice and forgiving spirit in the face of hateful, unjust persecution, make his light seem to burn even brighter to me… and for me.

We are now in the middle of a season of lights, so to speak. They are everywhere on houses, trees, buildings and windows. We look at them and go ‘ooooooh’ and ‘ahhhhhh’. But soon, they’ll be boxed up and put in storage for another year.

What about your light? In Christ, your light is much more than a decoration or an ornament. It is life-giving, showing others the Way out of the darkness.

Jesus said for us to let our lights shine all the time (Matthew 7:14-16) and the apostle Paul echoed his master by writing that Christians shine as lights in the middle of a crooked and perverse world, Philippians 2:14-15.

Do you remember this Randy Travis song?

There is a point when you cannot walk away,
when you have to stand up straight and tall and mean the words you say.
There is a point you must decide just to do it because it’s right,
that’s when you become a point of light.

There is a darkness that everyone must face,
it wants to take what’s good and fair and lay it all to waste.
And that darkness covers everything in sight,
until it meets a single point of light.

Now there’s a song!

The Christmas lights are nice, but they do not dispel the darkness. That’s your work, and mine.

Burn bright!