Light, Mirror, Action

When a heart is cold as ice, you can't melt it with advice.
No one wants to listen to a list of things they shouldn't do.
So I build a city on a hill and I light a candle on the sill.
Knowing you’ll be always knocking at the door.
Oh God I just want to love on everyone.
All I have is yours to give so let the people come… (“Learning to be the light”, Newworldson)

This song is on my top 10, very close to the top! Why is because besides being a real toe tapper, I can really relate to the words.  (http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/newworldson/learningtobethelight.html) Check them out for yourself and I dare you to tell me you don’t see a little bit of yourself within these words.  But I really connect to this song because it reminds me of my days in the Navy and being a new believer in the Lord Jesus.

In the included verses of the song the third line brings tears to my eyes. “So I build a city on a hill and I light a candle on the sill.” My job in the Navy was a Quartermaster which is basically the Navigator of the ship he is assigned too. When you’re new to a ship and not in charge you tend to draw the last straw on when you stand your watch. I mainly stood watch from Midnight to 4 in the morning.

Now you may be thinking that’s probably the worst time to be on watch and you’d be wrong in my eyes. IT WAS THE BEST! 1^st: all the big brass (High Ranking Officers) usually is not awake. 2^nd: It’s quiet! 3^rd: You get to sleep in!

Picture this, Midnight…the ship is running dark (no lights except red lights to illuminate interior areas connected to outer areas). Your 60 feet above the water on the bridge of a ship and you have a great view of the millions of stars in the clear sky. The waves (about 4 – 6 feet high) gently lap against the side of the ship as if beating to its own rhythm.  The white caps of the waves are visible and the only sound from the ship is a gentle humming from the Gas turbine engines.

On the Horizon you see the shoreline of some Country/Continent (Pick one). The only lights you see are Lighthouses, Channel markers and Towers/Building Markers winking at you to their own pulse. These lights can and usually are 10 to 30 miles away. This is my focus for this blog.

2 Corinthians 4:6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ

We live in a very dark place, be it drugs, alcohol, violence, gambling, lying, stealing the list goes on and on. This is because people live lives that are contrary to God and his word. They feel that there is nothing wrong with fornication, adultery, murder, and hatred, prejudice, planting bombs, shooting people, or failing to serve a Living God. Right has become wrong and wrong has become right.

We are not the light, Jesus is. We are but containers filled with his light if we choose to be. Like the lights on the shoreline, the light we carry can be seen from a long way off. Like the lights in the distance, are lights are bright and pierce the darkness. Like the lights in the distance, the light we carry guides and provides safe navigation to those who seek it.

Now let me tell you another thing about those lights on the shoreline, there not as bright as you may think. Most lighthouses have mirrors behind the lights to reflect that light out into the dark areas. See, we are not the light but we are the mirror. We reflect the light of Jesus into the darkness.

The word tells us to reflect this light into the darkness. You ever use a flashlight in a lit room? Not really effective is it. But take that same flashlight into a dark room and its power is seen for what it truly is. The flashlight won’t last forever though, it needs power…batteries. Our fellowship with God and likeminded believers; hearing and reading the Word of God; and praying constantly is what charges the light we carry.

The point is, if we don’t step out into the darkness, the light we contain is not being used to its full potential. We are limiting God and not doing what Jesus taught us to do.

As men and women we need to reflect his light!

I’ll end this writing with the Chorus of “Learning to be the light”…

It's so much brighter living in your world, Savior, what You did for me
You gave me something I want everyone to see.
When we struggle and it all goes wrong, only You can make it right
So I say…Oh oh oh oh oh…

I'm learning to be the light