A Cloudless Star-Strewn Night Sky .

Daniel 12:3 (The Message)

3 "'Men and women who have lived wisely and well will shine brilliantly, like the cloudless, star-strewn night skies. And those who put others on the right path to life will glow like stars forever.

Matthew 5:14 (New American Standard Bible)

14"You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;

Light of the world? What an incredible honor and challenge be assigned! That assignment seems much too difficult for me—just a regular old person living in the world with a small circle of influence. I am so busy with everyday living of my life that stepping up to this role is just out of the realm of possibilities for me right now it would seem.

I can remember decades ago camping with my Girl Scout troop at the Pumunkey Indian Reservation. We were in the middle of nowhere and the sky seemed so vast. I can still remember what I perceived to be “layers” of stars and thinking I was perhaps seeing into the next universe because the stars just went on and on, higher and higher into the night sky. I felt at the same time very small and very safe. The world made sense that night.

This verse from Matthew has more significance than we might think at first. Some of the eminent Rabbis of the day were referred to as lights of the world and lamps of the universe. It was a reference that was made not because of the holy commission the Jews believed the Rabbis had been assigned, but rather because they had elevated their religious leaders to a level that was almost equal to the Christ who was to come. The Rabbis apparently didn’t discourage being held in such esteem, either.

This is important to know because Jesus wasn’t speaking to the learned and the educated and those highly regarded. He was speaking to fishermen and craftsmen, farmers and sheep herders, beggars and prostitutes, tax collectors and ordinary people like you and me. He didn’t tell them they could become lights. He told them, "You are the light of the world.” That’s present tense.

He’s talking to us in the here and now as well. We are the light of world, not because of what or who we know or what or how much we have achieved. We are the light of the world because The Light is within us. Our light is like the tiny pin-prick of light on a deep dark canvas and Christ's light is the sun—big and bright enough to heat our planet. He is the sun. We are the stars. If even one star fails to shine in the night, navigators could lose their way; the seasons might not change in perfect time.

Each and every star is part of the divinely planned universe God breathed into existence. We shine by how we live our lives. We are reflectors of The Light. Because we know the origin of the One True light, we are unafraid to illuminate our own little corner of the universe.

My prayer today is that you live wisely and well so you may shine brilliantly. And that you remember to give the glory to the One True Light of the world.

Mary

Labels: daniel, light, matthew, stars

  ¶ 8:39 AM

  He is Worthy .
Isaiah 45:5-7

I am the LORD, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me, so that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting men may know there is none besides me. I am the LORD, and there is no other. I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the LORD, do all these things.

Revelation 4:9-11 NASB

And when the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever, and will cast their crowns before the throne, saying, " Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created."


When we finally come face to face with God I’m pretty sure we won’t be able to look Him in the eye. One reason will be that we are so ashamed of ourselves. I don’t mean in a self-loathing, self-pitying way, rather as a result of our discovery of who and what God really is! The glory and grandeur will be so breathtakingly unbelievable that we will prostrate ourselves before him—in gratitude, in awe, in abject humility and reverence.

I’ve wondered what it would be like to stand before the throne of God. Many have wondered. One of my favorite songs is “Imagine.” The writer says he can only imagine what his heart will see. He wonders if he will fall to his knees in the presence of Christ. It’s a beautiful song and expresses, I think the wondering of all our hearts—our deepest, most ardent desire.

I imagine that upon arrival in heaven, our minds and hearts and souls will be transformed to those of Christ himself. We will understand all things and our understanding will surpass the limits of our current humanity. I’m rambling a bit this morning. I think what I’ve gleaned from these two passages is that God has already revealed himself to man. What I wonder is that how we can turn away, how we can forget His majesty, how we can NOT strive tirelessly and relentlessly to join Him at the end of time.

It’s all a puzzle to me! I spent a glorious 36 hours at the ocean last week. Much of my time I sat on the sand and gazed out at the ocean. I had no “burning bush” revelations or discoveries! I did though reconnect with the eternal source of life. I sloughed off the world of man and opened myself up to sea and sand, sun and air. I was revived and refreshed in my soul.

The tide comes in and goes out. Every day. Ever single day. No matter what. God planned it that way. He is that constancy. He is that assurance. He is the creator and master of it all. I felt very close to God as I sat in the sand and breathed in the salt air, watched the white caps, heard the crash of the waves on the beach. I felt at the same time very small and very significant. I am one of the living creatures God created! He planned me before he even called the ocean into being. He covets me. He longs for me.

My prayer today is that you take some time to experience God in nature. He will meet you there if you open your mind and your heart to his glory.

Mary

Labels: Christ, darkness, glory, God, heaven, honor, Jesus, light, nature

  ¶ 8:14 AM