28th October - Light

 Light

Written by Andrew Norrie, Youth Worker

At this time of year Light is quite a big thing, or maybe more so the lack of it. The nights are getting darker sooner and the mornings are taking longer to appear. The darkness is slowly consuming the light and in some respects over powering it. We get up each day knowing that soon there will be more darkness in our daily lives than light. 

However we know that in a few months time the light will make a come back and start to consume the darkness. Days will get longer and eventually there will be more light in the day than darkness.
As seasons change this is our reality year in year out, yet the same can also be said for the spiritual side of our lives. With the one exception once we let the light in, it stays. 

The Bible tells us in John 1:5 "The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."

You see as Christians once we let Jesus into our lives, he takes up residency in our hearts, we belong to the light and there is no place for darkness in our lives.

John 8:12 tells us these words that Jesus spoke: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

As Christians that is fantastic news for us. We know and we walk in the knowledge of Jesus as the Light of the World that if we trust and believe in him he will bring light and truth into our lives.
Our job is to keep walking in that light and in that truth.

But that can be a challenge for many of us there is a constant temptation to go back into our old ways, habit and friendship groups. Those things that we struggled with before coming to faith continue to tempt us back.

You see the darkness cannot be friends with the light, the light consumes the darkness and it is constantly battling to try and take a hold back in our lives.

I am a massive Dr Who fan. As with most programmes like that it is always a battle of good versus evil, light verses darkness. Of course good always wins and usually there is a slight curve half way through when you aren’t sure if maybe the darkness will prevail. Just like in life there are times when we can stray onto the wrong path and move away from the light, but just like on TV, good will always triumph.
But there’s this one episode of Dr Who that comes to mind when I think about being overcome by the darkness or light. In this episode the light is seeping into the room and if it catches up with you then it slowly pulls you in and devours you.

You are overcome by the light and you can’t do anything about it.

Now in this episode the light is actually the opposite of what it is in Christian terms. To be consumed by the light means an untimely death for the character. (Well sucked into another dimension but we wont get into that). But for me the episode is a really good visual representation of how easy it is to be overcome.

Just like in that episode as Christians we can so easily set a foot into the darkness and slowly become surround by it (albeit we wont end up in another dimension but you get the idea.)

Luke 11:34-35 tells us "Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are healthy, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are unhealthy, your body also is full of darkness. See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness."

So tonight I want to challenge you with that verse.

What are the things in the darkness that you are allowing your eyes to stray to. What are things of your old self that you are looking back on and allowing to become a part of you again?
When that happens we need to call it out. We are in a constant battle. We need to fight to stay in the light.

Let’s push with all that is within us to walk confidently toward and in the light. Let us run the race set out before us. Even when we are tired and weary let us boldly go forward with the confidence that WE are God’s marvellous creation, called OUT of Darkness and INTO his wonderful light.

Tonight the nights may be getting darker but you are absolutely called to live in the LIGHT.