The Light Shines

"In him was life, and the life was the light of the world. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness cannot overtake it...And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father's only son, full of grace and truth." (John 1:4-5, 14)
This Friday I will turn 54 years old! Unbelievable! I am now officially old! Next year I can join AARP! One of the "gifts" of growing older (wonder why they call it growing?) is that you can't see a thing! You need more and more and more light!
When I was younger my grandfather used to tell me to turn on the lights or I'd ruin my eyes. He must have been right, 'cause my eyes are definitely ruined! It takes so much light for me to read, I feel like I need to walk around with one of those miner's helmets!
We need a great deal of light to see spiritually, as well. Light that will shine into the dark places of our lives. Light that isn't afraid to move among the shadowy places we keep hidden. We keep them hidden from others out of fear and shame. We may even keep them hidden from ourselves, afraid to face the unknown, afraid to face the consequences of our actions, or just plain afraid of what we might find. We may even deceive ourselves that we've hidden those deep dark places from God.
How foolish we must seem to the all-knowing One! When His heartlight searches our innnermost darkness, He fills us with grace and mercy, peace and forgiveness, warmth and light. He knows EXACTLY what is in our hearts and in our minds. Yet, He waits for us to yield to His warm embrace. He will not force His way into our hearts anymore than His son forced His way into an inn in Bethlehem. He enters only where we make room for Him.
Every home that shines with lights this Christmas, turn on the light in your hearts first! Every time you plug up the tree or light the candles, pause to look within at the places you hold back from Him and let go. Turn on the lights. The darkness of jobs lost, families split, substance abuse, fear, loneliness and economic burdens cannot overcome the light of Life found in the Prince of Peace. May the Word become flesh be born in your hearts anew this day. Merry Christmas! Pastor Caren