Night-lights
By Doug Bing, Washington Conference president
I like night-lights. You know the little low wattage lights that you plug into the wall of your bedroom.
The glow that they cast in an otherwise dark room is a good thing in my estimation. I suppose it comes from the time in my life when as a child I really didn’t like the dark. Ok, I admit it. I was afraid of the dark. My problem was that my parents didn’t really think I needed a night-light. Not sure of their reasoning, but in my childhood mind there was not a good reason to not have a night-light.
So, I resorted to looking for every sliver of light I could find as I lay in bed trying to not be afraid of the dark. At times, the moon light filled my room with a blessed light that was a comfort. Other times, it would be just a speck of light from distant stars that I could see through the window. The light in the cracks of the door when my parents were still awake was also something that I stared at until sleep finally came.
Light – no matter how low the wattage – always makes a difference in a dark space.
Light travels at 186,000 miles per second. The sunlight that reaches your home each morning is just over 8 minutes old. If you ever look at the sun, you are seeing what the sun looked like 8 minutes ago. But have you ever thought about the speed of darkness?
The speed of darkness is the same as light. If all the light goes out darkness takes over at the same speed.
In Matthew 5 Jesus told us that we are to be the light of the world, and as His followers we are to let our light shine. In other words, all followers of Jesus are light “night-lights.” We send a warm glow into a dark world. A light that is on will always dispel darkness, no matter the wattage. Each one of us can be that night-light that people see. Each one can be that night-light that points to the Light of the World.
When the early church was just getting started, Pentecost came. And when it came, the disciples were united in their prayers for Holy Spirit power. When that happened, the Bible tells us that light fell on each disciple like tongues of fire (Acts 2:2-3).
That light burned brightly that day and many people saw the light of Jesus and a united church. As a result, many gave their hearts to Jesus. Here in the Washington Conference let us join as we pray for a renewal of Holy Spirit power in our lives. We pray for our lights to shine brightly.