Illuminated by the Light of Christ

“Everything exposed by the light becomes visible – and everything that is illuminated becomes a light.” ~Ephesians 5:13

I was recently on a road trip with my hubby and thought I would try to catch up on some work while we were in the car. I pulled out my laptop, flipped it open, and started to type. All of a sudden, sunlight cascaded across the computer screen and made it impossible to see.

All I could see was a million dirty spots covering the entire screen. I had been blind to them until the sunlight illuminated each speck. I valiantly tried to continue working, but those pesky spots seemed to block me at every turn.

As I closed my computer, figuratively waving my white flag, I couldn’t help but be frustrated with how bright the sun was that day. I mean, if it had not been so sunny, then I wouldn’t have seen all those spots, and I could have gotten my work done.

I quietly sat there and just kept wondering where all those spots had come from. How long had I been blind to the dirt that covered my entire screen? And why was I blaming the sunshine when all it was doing was illuminating what was already there?

I couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more I was meant to learn from my dirty laptop.

When we arrived at our destination, I tucked myself into a cozy corner away from the direct sunlight, relieved to be back in a place that hid all those spots. When I opened up my laptop this time, though, everything had changed. See, even though the indirect light in my corner hid those pesky spots, I could no longer pretend I hadn’t seen the dirt. As I stared at the screen, I knew it was dirty, and now it bothered me that I couldn’t see the spots. My eyes had been opened to what was truly there, and I was left with only two options: clean the screen or let the spots remain.

Isn’t this just how we approach our sin?

We can be blissfully unaware of the dirt in our lives until Christ’s light shines upon us, showing us the truth. Honestly, it can be overwhelming to face our flaws, which can make us long for a dark room where our spots can stay hidden. We can even become frustrated with the people in our lives who are brave enough to lovingly shine God’s light upon us. Light can make us feel vulnerable and exposed.However, there is no condemnation in the light of Christ. There is only redemption, cleansing, healing, and grace. The enemy is an expert at blinding us to this truth and making us feel deep shame for our hidden spots, but our God is not a God of condemnation. He lovingly illuminates our lives, humbly convicts us, and washes us clean with his unending grace and love.

Just remember, God’s very first words in his own book were:

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. (Genesis 1:1-4 NIV)

Dear friends, light is good. Light is very good. Let’s be brave and embrace the light no matter what it may illuminate.

Dear Lord, we humbly ask you to pour out your light and illuminate our lives. Help cleanse us of all our dirty spots, and show us how to embrace your light even when we feel unworthy and exposed. Remind us that your light is an incredible gift that comes to heal and redeem us from the darkness. Amen.

Scripture for Reflection

“But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.”  (John 3:21 NIV)

“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12 NIV)

Reach for More

Dear friends, we have two options when God’s beautiful light illuminates our dirt: clean the screens of sin in our lives, or let our dirty spots remain. This week’s challenge is to let God’s light illuminate the hidden spots in our life, take an honest look at our flaws, and clean our screens. This week, pray each day that God separates the darkness from the light and replaces guilt and shame with grace and healing.

Be courageous, and let’s come together ready to bravely face our flaws and embrace the light of his unending grace and redemption.

Please, come back and leave a comment telling us about how God spoke to you this week, or share your progress on social media using the hashtag #tgtreachformore. We would love to hear from you.

 

Sarah Lundgren has a passion for all things sparkly, loves God with her whole heart, and is known to love Starbucks chai lattes a whole lot, too. Sarah is currently snuggled in the heart of Grand Rapids, Michigan with her sweet hubby, J, and her full-time job is making pretty things all day long for her Etsy business, so sarah designs, but she also loves writing devotional content here at The Glorious Table.