Monthly Archive for September, 2010

It’s practically cliché to note that telling other people how to correct their faults seems a lot easier than overcoming my own shortcomings.  Actually, there’s a good, logical reason for that.

Jesus told his followers to remove the log from their own eye before trying to take the spec out of someone else’s eye.  A log is big, heavy, and cumbersome.  Moving one is a chore that requires a great deal of work and some assistance.  A spec, however, is easily brushed away.

To help others, I must first realize that my own needs are great.  The support and aid of friends is essential if I ever hope to rid myself of the obstacles that obscure my vision.  Only then am I able to return the favor … even a small fraction of it.

(Thanks to all those who are part of this process in my life.  And special thanks to Linda, whose insight sparked this entry.)

As a young child in Sunday School I learned a song.  In it I declared “This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.”  And to the question “Hide it under a bushel?”, the response was “No!”… as in “Horrors!”

Eventually I got old enough to read, on my own, the scripture that was the basis for that song.  Years later I even got brave enough to think about what that passage actually meant. I then realized that the children’s song wasn’t exactly on point.

Jesus said “I am the light of the world.”  He lights His light in us.  Then he says “No man lights a light and hides it under a bushel.”  It’s all about Jesus, who refuses to keep His followers out of sight.  He wants them out in the open, like a city on a hill, becoming a beacon for those lost in darkness.

Personally, I don’t always feel that there’s much of a glow about my spiritual life.  The good news is that it’s not up to me.  It’s His light, not mine, and He seems to be singing “I’m gonna let it shine.”