Tag Archives: light

The Morning Comes!

19 Friday Jun 2015

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I’ve seen your sun rising in the morning
I’ve seen your sky reflecting your glory
I’ve heard your birds sing,
they’re calling out your name
As they usher in a new day

Isaiah 60:1-2, 8 NIV

“Arise, shine, for your light has come,
    and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
2 See, darkness covers the earth
    and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
    and his glory appears over you.

8 “Who are these that fly along like clouds,
    like doves to their nests?

You really need to read this whole chapter to get the full picture of the message that Isaiah is bringing.

The image is one of darkness turned to light, sadness turned to happiness. Why? Because in the previous chapter, Isaiah explained what was separating the people from God ……… their sin. But God took away the sin, he removed the barrier between himself and his people. So although the morning begins in pitch darkness, it gradually becomes bright. Not by the light of the sun or moon, but by the everlasting light of the Lord. And once this light rises, it will never set. There will be no more gloom and darkness.

The glory of Lord will be our light!

Here’s to a new day, a day full of bright light!

Mugs up!

All verse quotes courtesy of biblegateway.com

Something Out Of Nothing

17 Wednesday Jun 2015

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Cristales_cueva_de_NaicaFB

Sometimes reality is so fantastic that you find it nearly impossible to believe. For example, the Crystal Cave discovered in the deserts of Mexico. The size of the crystals are so enormous, it’s like something out of a fantasy movie.

“Buried a thousand feet (300 meters) below Naica mountain in the Chihuahuan Desert, the cave was discovered by two miners excavating a new tunnel for the Industrias Peñoles company in 2000.

The cave contains some of the largest natural crystals ever found: translucent gypsum beams measuring up to 36 feet (11 meters) long and weighing up to 55 tons.

“It’s a natural marvel,” said García-Ruiz, of the University of Granada in Spain.” national geographic

To see more photos you can click here

The natural world is so full of unbelievable wonders, like this cave. Who would have ever thought that there could be something so amazing buried so deep beneath the surface of the earth? What an incredible discovery!

God not only creates unbelievable things in the earth, he creates unbelievable things in our hearts.

2 Corinthians 4:6 NIV

6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,”made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.

God’s ability to create and recreate is not limited to the physical world, it extends to the spiritual world as well. He looked inside us and made something out of nothing, making light shine where there was only darkness. Without the light that he put in us, that is his Holy Spirit, we would not have the ability to perceive and understand who he is anymore than we could explore a crystal cave in the dark. In the cave, light is not only necessary to see where you are going, it illuminates the glory and beauty of the crystals. The Spirit within us illuminates the glory of God displayed in the face of Christ.

I pray this day that your hearts will be bright, fully illuminated by the Spirit of God.

Here’s to a great new day! Mugs up!

All verse quotes courtesy of biblegateway.com

Catch The Tears That Fall

23 Thursday Apr 2015

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Friends are like an extension of our family and some much closer. We want the best for them because their lives have become so intimately entwined with ours. We share their highs and lows, we laugh and we cry, we grow and experience all phases of life together.

We find it easy to celebrate when good things happen. Birthdays, weddings, graduations, anniversaries ……… all a piece of cake.

But what do you say when someone’s world is caving in? Then what?

We use one of our God-given gifts – empathy – the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. It comes from the Greek word empátheia (from em- ‘in’ + pathos ‘feeling’)

How did Jesus teach empathy?

One of the best examples I can find is his interaction with Mary and Martha after the death of their brother Lazarus:

John 11:32-36 NIV

32 When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. 34 “Where have you laid him?” he asked.

“Come and see, Lord,” they replied.

35 Jesus wept.

36 Then the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”

In verse 33, when Jesus was deeply moved in spirit and troubled, it was a form of empathy, but with a kick. The word used is embrimáomai, which literally means to snort like an angry horse or to roar with rage. It expresses strong indignation, a deep feeling that is moved to sternly admonish. The word is only used 5 times in scripture: twice by John in chapter 11, twice by Mark, and once by Matthew. When Matthew and Mark use it, it means to give a stern warning.

So what does this tell us about how Jesus felt? He was angry at death, he was angry at disease, he was angry at the sin that had corrupted his world. He saw and felt the pain and anguish that resulted from its effects and he was moved with compassion for those who suffered from it.

We may not have the ability to bring back a physical life from the dead, but we all possess the ability to resurrect an emotionally dead person. We can hold their hand while they suffer. We can pray and offer words of encouragement. When there’s nothing more to say, we listen …. and catch the tears that fall. We store them away in our hearts and use them as a reminder of the hope we have for something better.

Now might be one of those times ……..

Mugs up! Take heart, today may be your chance to help someone through the toughest day of their lives.

All verse quotes courtesy of biblegateway.com

Being Stars

16 Friday Jan 2015

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slystarsblog1I can only remember two times in my life when I literally saw stars. The time that I was swinging on the rope and hit a tree, a.k.a. George of the Jungle (see Rope Swings and Humiliation) and once when I was at work.

The first time it happened, I was working in a house, installing knobs on some kitchen cabinet doors. I squatted down to pick up a tool, failing to remember that I had left a door fully opened at ninety degrees. When I stood up, my head crashed into the bottom of the door. Little blinking stars and bluebirds whirled around my head as I tumbled back to the floor. So this is what it’s like to be a cartoon character ………..

Philippians 2:14-16 (NIV)

14 Do everything without grumbling or arguing, 15 so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky 16 as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.

This Greek word phóstér can be interpreted as stars as it is in verse 15 of Philippians chapter 2. If you dig a little deeper, you find the root word, phṓs, which means the manifestation of God’s self-existent life; divine illumination to reveal and impart life, through Christ. It’s where we get our English word phosphorous which means “Light Bringer.” Interestingly enough, the Latin word for phosphorus is Lucifer.

glow in the darkCertain plants and animals contain phosphorus materials that enable them to glow in the dark. “Bioluminescent phytoplankton (the plant kind) light up the ocean with their bright blue glow when they are stressed by the movement of the waves. As the tide brings them in, they are pushed together and create an incredible scene straight from a fairy tale.” (distractify – The 20 Most Dazzling Creatures That Naturally Glow In The Dark by Avri Clements.)

Some examples of places in scripture where you can find the root word phṓs are
Acts 22:6, where Paul recounts his conversion and says, “…..suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me.” It is also used at the transfiguration of Jesus in Matthew 17. “His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light.” Of the 73 times the word is used in the New Testament, virtually all of them are in some way a reference to Jesus and how he was revealed or manifested to someone. Matthew 4:16, Luke 2:32, John 1:5 just to name a few more.??????????

The appearing of Christ was more than a revelation, it was a revolution. It completely changed the world. No one approaches the light of Jesus without being changed.

His light has somehow, mysteriously been imparted to us. His purpose? That we should be little stars of light brightening the parts of the world that have not yet been exposed to the goodness of Christ. In the Philippians verse, Paul states this, that we too, can become an illumination, a brilliant light that changes the world.

A star has no control over its own brilliance; that is the responsibility of the one who made the star.

Christians live their lives through the infused power of Christ. It is Christ living in you that causes you to burn so brightly. Your words and actions develop strength and authority “as you hold firmly to the word of life.”

Alone, we are just human; with Christ, we are the brilliant reflection of God’s love.

I’m lifting the mug today with a bright new outlook. Together we can change the world, one bright star at a time.

All verse quotes courtesy of biblegateway.com

Deep Darkness, Great Light

23 Tuesday Dec 2014

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light dawningOnce, I was working by myself on a project in a classroom at a local college. The room was in the middle of the building with no exterior doors or windows. Suddenly the power went out, not just in my room, but apparently in the whole building. There were no emergency lights so the room was completely dark ……. I mean pitch black dark, no light whatsoever. Just for fun, I held up my hand to see if it was visible……. nope, I couldn’t see anything.

Fortunately, after sitting in the dark for about 20 minutes, the lights came back on. Creepy ……..

Isaiah 9:2

The people walking in darkness
    have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
    a light has dawned.

What Isaiah describes is deep darkness, no light, not a pleasant stroll on the beach in the moonlight or a nighttime walk downtown under the city lights. No this is not fun, it’s debilitating.

The word darkness is used twice in the NIV translation of this verse, but they are not the same words in Hebrew. Isaiah is defining darkness two different ways, both equally hazardous. In the first part of the sentence, the people are “walking in darkness.” The Hebrew word used here for darkness is what you would expect: no light, obscurity. The people have adopted a lifestyle that has been obscured from the light, a careless, fumbling in the dark lifestyle. They have no knowledge of what the world really looks like because they can’t see it.

The second part of the verse refers to those “living in darkness.” Out of their rebelliousness against God, the people have made the darkness their home. The word used for darkness here is the same word used in Psalm 23:4 where David writes, “I walk through the valley of the shadow of death.” It is the picture of doom and gloom, a deathlike shadow, a spiritual darkness, a place full of evil. This is a dangerous place to live, in complete separation from God.

But then the morning comes, an awakening; a light dawns on the people. Not just any light, not just a candle or a street light. No, a great light, a light brighter than the sun, so bright you can’t look at it without hurting your eyes.

Note that the action is on the light; the people themselves have done nothing to change their condition. Some translations use the word shines or shone instead of dawn, but either way the original means to illuminate, to enlighten. The light changes what was previously a world of death and darkness into a world of life. Now there is restored sight, now there is freedom to move and live without fear of falling. No longer blinded by the darkness of their hearts, the people are able to see and know God. He has illuminated their world by his love.

Chapter 9 of Isaiah is a well-known prophecy referring to the coming of Christ. It is a reminder that all of us were living in darkness, helpless and hopeless ……….. until the light dawned ……… until Jesus came to illuminate our hearts and minds.

As we approach Christmas Eve, I raise my mug, and I hope you will raise yours with me, to give thanks to God for sending his Son to rescue us from the darkness and illuminate our lives.

All verse quotes courtesy of biblegateway.com

No Soap In The Eyes, Please

10 Wednesday Dec 2014

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showerhead

courtesy of houselogic.com

I was sharing lunch one day with my not yet daughter-in-law, who is originally from Peru. During the course of the meal, I asked her to tell me about some of the things that she and her sisters did in Peru when they were growing up. She informed me that they used to make soap. Then she began to describe the various ingredients that they would include: carrots, peas, pasta ……..What?! You put pasta and vegetables in soap? She looked at me like I had two heads. Then I realized, there was a slight misunderstanding. She used the word sopa, not soap, which in Spanish means soup!

Everyone knows how painful it is to get soap, not sopa, in your eyes when you wash your hair. It burns badly and causes momentary blindness. You immediately try to flush it out with clean water to remove the chemical that is causing the pain. Some people claim that certain shampoos can cause permanent blindness, but I don’t think that’s true. Either way, it hurts when soap gets in the eyes……..

John 9:1-7

As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. 4 As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. 5 While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

6 After saying this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. 7 “Go,” he told him, “wash in the Pool of Siloam” (this word means “Sent”). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.

I am perplexed by the various methods Jesus used to heal. One has to wonder why for certain individuals that Jesus added extra steps for the healing to occur. We know he had the power to heal immediately, if he so chose, because he did it routinely. But in this story, Jesus spit in the dirt, made some mud, put it on the blind man’s eyes, then instructed the blind man to wash in the Pool of Siloam. Why?

There are several unique qualities about this miracle healing:

  • The man was blind from birth
    • Jesus said that he was born that way so that “the works of God could be displayed”
    • We are all born “spiritually blind,” not the result of individual sin
  • The blind man didn’t ask to be healed, Jesus made the initiative
  • In all of scripture, no one but Jesus ever healed a blind person; it was a mark of the Messiah – Psalm 146:8, Isaiah 35:5, Matt 11:5
  • Jesus sent the blind man to wash in the Pool of Siloam
    • Siloam means sent – it is the same word in the Hebrew and the English transliteration as the word apostle, or missionary.
    • Jesus specifically mentions that he was sent by God
  • The mud made from dust and spit, a throwback to the creation of Adam
    • Only God has the power to create, Jesus is God
  • The man was not healed until he obeyed Jesus and washed in the pool
    • To be given “new sight” required an act of faith, belief
  • Not so surprising, Jesus healed the man on the Sabbath
  • The man was so dramatically changed by the healing that he wasn’t easily recognized by the people who had known him his whole life
  • Jesus used the man’s physical healing as a way to bring about his spiritual healing (please read the entire chapter of John 9)
man-born-blind

courtesy christianitymalaysia.com

When God washes us, he removes the impurities that have prevented us from seeing clearly. We are no longer blinded by our sin or blinded from the truth. We begin to see life from a completely different perspective. Suddenly, things that we learned in Sunday School begin to make sense. Words jump off the pages of scripture and grab us by the throat. Prayer takes on a whole new dimension. All of life has new meaning, and it is completely unexplainable.

That is the miracle of new life that the Messiah, he who was sent by his Father, brings to us in the person of Jesus. He was sent to give sight to the blind, not just to the physically blind, but to the spiritually blind.

I lift the mug today to those struggling for vision. May God remove from your eyes whatever is preventing them from seeing clearly.

All verse quotes courtesy of biblegateway.com

 

 

 

 

Through The Tunnel

15 Wednesday Oct 2014

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John 1:5 – NIV

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
I hit a boy on a bicycle once. I was still a teenager and had only been driving a couple of years. I was going down a long stretch of road and I saw the boy a long way off, weaving back and forth on his bike. I slowed down and blew the car horn. I thought, “It would be my luck that he would try to cross the road at the moment I reach him.” How prophetic……..that’s just what he did. The front right corner of the car caught him square on and threw him into the air. I pulled over and jumped from the car. Fortunately for me, he was not hurt badly, just very shaken up. After contacting his family, I took him to the hospital and had him checked thoroughly.
That story could have ended much worse. I don’t know how I would have responded if he had died.
Today’s post is a continuation of yesterday’s “Get Out Of The Rut.” It’s one thing to be stuck in a little rut, but it’s completely different when the rut becomes a deep depression. I want to be clear – I am not addressing the issues of mental illness or medical depression; I’m not qualified for that. I am speaking to the common darkness that all Christians face.

People fall into depression for many reasons: a death in the family, a job lost, the end of a relationship, a financial crisis, a chronic illness, etc.  A traumatic event sends us spiraling into confusion and despair until we feel like we’re alone in a deep dark tunnel, powerless to escape.

I know what it is like to be depressed. I’ve been there. There were moments when it felt so dark, I didn’t know when I would feel the warmth of sunlight on my face again.

Isaiah 9:2 – NIV

The people walking in darkness
    have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
    a light has dawned.

God knows that we are prone to darkness. We are a people who frequently find ourselves walking down dark paths. It was for this that Jesus came – to free us from the power of darkness. Breaking free from depression is an effort to break out of the darkness and into the light. God does not abandon us in our pain; he is here to help.

The Bible speaks about walking with the Lord, not running with the Lord. Though trail running is a popular sport, it’s not recommended at night. There are too many obstacles that might cause one to trip. Even with a head lamp, it would be difficult to avoid potential dangers. Navigating a trail in the dark is much safer done at a slow and careful pace ………. and never alone.

To come out of the darkness, we must walk toward the light. It is not accidental that the Bible refers to Jesus as the Light of the World and His Word as a light to our path. (Psalm 119:105) The scriptures illuminate the truth and increase our faith so that we have power to overcome our problems. (1 John 5:4-5)

Coming out of the tunnel of depression takes time, one patient step after another.  Consistent and persistent prayer helps realign our hearts and our heads with God’s will. (Roms 12:2)

God never intended for us to solve our problems alone. While you may feel that yours is a private struggle, you need the help of others. Friends are a gift from God to encourage us in our deepest need. (Gal 6:2)

There is light at the end of the tunnel; to reach it, you have to walk through the tunnel first. But you don’t have to go alone……

The mug is raised today to those suffering from depression. May you find the strength to come out of your tunnel and into the light!

All verse quotes courtesy of biblegateway.com

Lanterns of Hope

09 Thursday Oct 2014

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Burning three kerosene lamps background, concept light

courtesy of afxhome on fotolia.com

In 1993, Jane and I began supporting a young boy in Kenya through World Vision. It was new and exciting; we looked forward to the reports we received from the sponsored child and the work project. Over the years we watched him grow and heard stories about his family and school.

One day we received a letter, informing us that our sponsored child wasn’t doing well in school. We called World Vision to find out what was happening and why he was struggling. They told us that part of his problem was that he didn’t have sufficient light to study at night. So we asked if there was something we could do to help. They offered that we could purchase a lamp. Really? And how much would that be? Oh about $15.00. So for only $15.00 we could help alleviate this child’s frustration with school. That was a no-brainer. We sent money for the project manager to buy a lamp so he could see at night; he began to improve immediately.

I am still amazed that such a little investment could bring about such a dramatic change in one person’s life. It took little effort and time on our part to make the necessary arrangements.

Luke 8:16 (NIV)

16 “No one lights a lamp and hides it in a clay jar or puts it under a bed. Instead, they put it on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light.

Oil lamp

courtesy of Wikimedia

In Jesus’ day, lamps were made from clay. They were simple, with a reservoir for the olive oil and a “nozzle” on which the wick would rest. Household lamps were small enough to be carried in the palm of the hand.

The point of the parable above is simple. When it was dark enough to light a lamp, you’d set it high enough to illuminate everything around — on a shelf in the stone wall of your home or on a wooden lampstand in the center of the room, allowing light to shine on the entire room.

No one would light a lamp and then put it under a jar or under a bed. Besides the possible danger, it would be pointless – the light would go out. The purpose of the lamp is to illuminate, to give light so that you, and others, can see.

Spiritually speaking, there are those who are outside the house, outside the church, who are walking in the dark, feeling hopeless. They are looking for a safe haven that is casting a light into the darkness. That light should be you and me. We are the wick; we allow ourselves to soak up the oil, which is the Spirit. It is the Spirit that burns, not the wick. We are simply the conduit through which the Spirit is allowed to work. By allowing ourselves to be used by Christ and being a living example, we illuminate the lives of others around us. We become a lantern of hope.

The mug is raised today to those who are stumbling in the dark. May you see the light of truth that illuminates and gives hope to the world!

All verse quotes courtesy of biblegateway.com