Shining Our Light in the Darkness

And God saw the light, that it was good;

and God divided the light from the darkness (Genesis 1:4, NKJV).

With the dawn of another new year, I found myself back in Genesis, once again reading the glorious creation account. What a story! Unequaled in splendor or drama, we see our amazing God speak all of creation into existence—including light and darkness. And immediately after creating light, the Scriptures tell us that God “saw the light, that it was good,” and then He “divided the light from the darkness.”

Perhaps that statement could simply stand on its own—meaning that God provided for both day and night—but several other verses of Scripture (2 Corinthians 6:14; Ephesians 5:11; 1 John 1:5-6) declare that God is Light, that there is no darkness in Him at all, and that we, as His children, should also walk in the light and have no darkness within ourselves.

Now we know that we can’t avoid those who belong to the kingdom of darkness, nor should we, as we are called to shine the light on them and to help them find their way out of that darkness and back to God. But shining our light to dispel darkness is a far cry from stepping into and fellowshipping with that darkness. It is a distinction we dare not ignore as we move into a new year of serving God and living for Him.

I’m not much for New Year’s resolutions, as they usually fall by the wayside somewhere around mid-February. But this year I am determined to spend more time in the presence of the One who is Light and in whom there is absolutely no darkness at all. As a result, I believe His light will shine more brightly in me and will more effectively draw those who are lost in darkness. The worst thing I could do is to become enmeshed in even the slightest bit of that darkness myself and therefore prevent others from seeing it.

That is my determination for 2012, and I pray you will join me. Jesus said He was the Light of the world, but once He ascended into heaven He left the shining of that light to us. Will you join me in this determination to let our light shine in the darkness? I will pray for you to do so; will you also pray for me? For when God saw the light, He immediately declared that it was good.

What a Difference a Year Makes!

Some of you may remember this picture from Christmas 2010. One year ago on Christmas morning, my husband snapped this photo of me with my 89-year-old mother. Just over six months later, on July 2, 2011, we all gathered together to celebrate her 90th birthday. Then, on August 3, just one month and one day later, Mom "graduated to heaven," where she is now spending Christmas with the One whose birth we now celebrate.

Wow. What a difference a year makes! Or even a month or a week or a day. We aren't promised any time beyond this moment, at least so far as our temporal life here on earth, but we are promised eternity with Christ if we receive Him as our Savior and turn our lives over to Him.

Mom did that when she was fifty years old, and she lived the last forty of her years as a child of God. That's why, as Christmas 2011 closes in on us, we can rejoice for her even though our celebration is tinged with the sadness of missing her. We know where Mom is at this very moment, and one day soon we will join her there. What a great and precious promise!

If you haven't already settled that "forever issue" in your own heart, don't let another minute go by without doing so. None of us knows where we will be this time next year, but if we know the One who holds the future in His nail-scarred hands, we can rest in His eternal security. Just ask Him to forgive you, to be your Lord and Savior, to keep you close to His heart for all eternity--and He will faithfully do so. And then, if there's someone you need to visit or call or just makes things right with, do it now...while you still can. Trust me; you'll be glad you did.

Merry Christmas, beloved ones, and a joyous New Year to all of you!

Pressing in to the New Year in Christ!

Forgetting those things which are behind
and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,
I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus
(Philippians 3:13-14, NKJV).

I can scarcely believe that this is our last weekly devotional and prayer/praise list of 2010. I know: Time flies when you’re having fun—and, at my age, even when you aren’t! But that’s all right. We’ve read the end of the Book and we know how it all turns out. What we don’t know is what lies ahead for us between this moment in time and the twinkling of an eye when we step into eternity to be with our Lord and Savior.
With economic downturns, personal health and relational issues, rising unemployment numbers, and various other challenges of living in this broken world, that not knowing can leave us more than slightly apprehensive at times, can’t it? I’m a German-raised, firstborn Type-A personality who likes my ducks in order before sticking my toe in the water. But sometimes it just doesn’t work out that way.
Facing a new year can evoke a lot of emotions: excitement, joy, anticipation—or fear, dread, depression. Much of where we land in that mix depends on whether or not we’ve made peace with the past by asking for and receiving God’s forgiveness for our sins and failures so we can effectively forget “those things which are behind” and, by faith in the One who bought our forgiveness and promises a glorious, never-ending future with Him, “press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” Regardless of whether this past year brought good times or bad (or more than likely, a combination of the two), God’s purpose for us is to reach ever higher, to aspire to a nobler, more honorable life this year than last. And we can do that only by resting in His promises to live in us as we rest in Him.
Leave the past—the good, the bad, and the ugly—under the Blood where it belongs, and anticipate the future with joy, for that same Blood that forgives and covers yesterday will be there for us tomorrow. Happy New Year, beloved ones!

Pressing into the New Year...and Eternity!

One thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind
and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,
I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:13-14).

“The upward call of God…” What better time to reflect on that upward call than on the final day of the calendar year? And yet, how easy it is to get sidetracked from that upward call by focusing instead on “those things which are behind”!
I have a tendency to judge myself harshly, to expect more from myself than I am able to deliver. And I have a terrible time forgiving myself for past sins and failures.
How can God use me to bless others when I’m guilty of…?
How dare I call myself a Christian after I…?
How can I even consider going out to minister to others after what I did when…?
Did you find yourself filling in the blanks? We all do it, don’t we? And what more effective way can we employ to render ourselves impotent to the Kingdom of God than to beat ourselves up for the past? If we want to ensure that 2010 is a personal failure, all we have to do is hang on to the failures of 2009 and before. But if we are determined to heed the admonition of the Scriptures to reach “forward to those things which are ahead,” knowing that ultimately they are good things because God has promised they will be so, then we must forget “those things which are behind” and PRESS toward the goal, which is responding to the “upward call of God.”
Allow yourself to reflect and rejoice on the blessings of the past, but leave the sins and heartaches with the One who has already paid the price for them. There is a great prize ahead of us, just waiting for us to press in and receive it. Don’t miss it, beloved! It is God’s good and perfect gift to us in the New Year…and throughout eternity.