Light in the Darkness

                                                          Philippians 2:14-15
                                   Do all things without complaining and disputing;
                                   that you may become blameless children of God
                                        without fault in the midst of a crooked and
                                           perverse generation, among whom you
                                                   shine as lights in the world
                                                     
                                 
                                    "This little light of mine, I'm going to let it shine!
                                     This little light of mine, I'm going to let it shine,
                                          Let it shine, Let it shine, let it shine! "

How well I remember singing this song with all my little friends in Sunday school class. We would hold up our pointer finger pretending it was our light that would never go out. We were going to sing for Jesus forever! Little did we know, without Jesus in our lives, we would have nothing to shine.

                  Then Jesus spoke to them again saying, "I am the light of the world.
                  He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life."
                                                                                                       __John 8:12

Jesus became the light of the world to make a way for us in the darkness. Without Christ in our lives we are lost, like sheep without a shepherd. We live our lives without hope or promise for the future.

Before I came to Christ, life didn't seem to have any purpose. It seemed like all we did was the same thing over and over every day with no real meaning, and then we eventually died. It all seemed so senseless. Then I heard a pastor speak, and I felt like He was speaking just to me. He said, "You can't know your purpose until you know the One who made you." His words got my attention! He then went on to introduce the audience to Jesus Christ. At that point I knew Jesus as the Son of God, the One we prayed to and sang about in church, but I didn't know we could know Him personally, that He would come and live within us through the Holy Spirit. I accepted Jesus that day as my Personal Savior. I confessed I was a sinner, asked for His forgiveness, and then invited Him into my heart as my Lord and Savior. By faith I was saved and my life has never been the same. I have purpose where I once had confusion, light where I once walked in darkness, and hope for all my tomorrows.

         If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God
         has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes
         unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.  
                                                                                                     __Romans 10:9-10
     

Tug-A-War

                                                             1 Peter 5:7
                                                 Casting all your care upon Him,
                                                          for He cares for you

As I was pondering this Scripture, the word "all" stood out among the rest. The Lord is telling us to cast not just some of our care, but all our care upon Him. He wants the care we feel we can handle, the care that seems impossible, and the care that tears at our heartstrings, threatening to rob us of our peace.

I will never forget going through a particularly hard time in my life. After crying until I was exhausted, I finally fell asleep. In a dream I saw the Lord walking up to me with a big white box. As He held the box out to me, He gently said, "Cyndy, put everything that has to do with this situation in the box." I remember putting harsh words spoken and shattered relationships into the box. Then I put the lid on the box and handed it back to Him. As Jesus took the box from me, He took the lid off, and with compassion, said to me, "I said put all that has to do with the situation in the box. You have only put some." He wanted total commitment; I put myself in the box. As He took the box back, He looked at me and spoke these words;

                    "This is the situation. If you will let me have it, I promise to take care of
                      this heartache for you. But, I do not play tug-a-war. If you reach for the
                      box, I will let go and let you have it. Just know, if you take it back there
                      is nothing I can do. Either you will have the box, or I will. If you want me
                      to fix it, give me the box."

Then I woke up. Nothing had changed, the heartache was as real as it had been before falling asleep. But, I knew what I must do. I must give it all to Jesus. From that point on I hung on to His words, "I do not play tug-a-war," as I kept giving the heartache back to Him. True to His promise, and in His perfect way, He brought peace in the midst of turmoil, and joy unspeakable back into my life.

It is only as we are willing to put everything in the box and hand it all to Jesus that we find the peace we so desperately need. How important it is to remember; Jesus knows how to take care of our needs, we only think we know how. As we hand our heartache to Him, He will take what looks impossible to us, and use it for our good, and for His glory.

                      In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you
                      have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith,
                      being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by
                      fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus
                      Christ.                                                                             __1 Peter1:6-7