Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Matthew 5:14

When I was growing up, security lights weren’t really a thing we had out in the country. At night, it was dark. I grew up in a beautiful little neighborhood made up only of relatives. Four houses in a row were full of aunts, uncles and grandparents. Often as a youngster, my mom would send me down to a neighboring house to borrow or loan something. A cup of sugar, stick of butter, whatever was needed was shared freely between family members. At night, I would start out walking confidently, having played in all the backyards daily… as I continued my journey, various noises would creep out from the darkness and breed fear in my little heart. By the time I reached my grandmother’s house with the carport light on, I was often in a dead run and would fly into the house and the safety it promised.

That single lightbulb in my grandparents carport was a beacon calling to me, showing me the way to safety and freedom from whatever imagined worry I had let run wild in my mind. As Christians, we are to shine a light into the dark world and fill the lost with hope of something better. Just as I knew that when I crossed the threshold into my grandparents’ home, there would be complete safety, happiness, and joy (and probably a cookie).

Our lives, in Christ, should stand out from the world, just like a light in the midst of a dark night. In a world filled with darkness and sin, if we are living lives close to our Savior we will be obviously different from the world we inhabit. Our lives, lived in holiness, become a beacon to those searching for something different than what the world offers. Our faith, when it permeates every part of our lives and becomes obvious to those watching from the darkness of sin, guides them to the safe harbor that we have in our Lord.

Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Matthew 5:15

Today’s world tells us that faith should be something private, that we never talk about outside of our religious gatherings. The Word tells us that we are expected to walk in a way that makes our faith such a part of our lives that anyone can see it. We can’t shrink in fear of the naysayers of this world. Those who are outside the light of our Lord seek to silence us, to keep others in darkness, but our duty is to share the light, to give it to others so that the whole world might be lit.

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Matthew 5:16

Beloved, let your light shine in such a way that all may see. Through your words, your actions, your love, shine the grace of God throughout the land! Be that beacon to those in your life who need to experience the love of our Lord! Show them that there is a better way, that there is truly a God who wants to give a life beyond their greatest imaginations!