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Ministry of Daily Life

The Light Goes On

By: Pastor Marty
Posted: Thursday, January 1, 2004

When I was a boy, I used to love to play with firecrackers. I remember lighting the fuse of a firecracker, watching as the fire takes off, and then begin waiting for the explosion to happen. It was always fun waiting for the firecracker to explode, as the fire goes down the fuse and then disappears for just a second before ignition. Sometimes it seems like forever though, as certain firecrackers won't explode right away, or even at all. You never know exactly when those firecrackers will go off. But when they do go BOOM, it sure is fun.

Epiphany is the season in the church year that happens when the sky is dark outside. The sun has begun its yearly climb into our skies, but still wakes up late and goes to bed early each day. So we live life in the darkness of the world, but with the lit fuse that hides inside the firecracker, right before the explosion.

We are told in God's Word that we have light inside of us. The Christmas story told of the birth of Jesus Christ who is the light of the world. That is, Jesus is the One that the creator of the universe sent so that we could understand the nature of Love. The Gospel of John tells us:

The Light Shines in the Darkness
And the Darkness has not overcome it.

Kind of like that spark disappears into the firecracker, the light of Christ has been put into our hearts through the gift of our baptism. As you walk around the world, you don't know when that light will show up, but the promise of God is that it will. And you will "explode" love all over. Just like the light going on in a dark room.

Where will the light come out of you? Maybe through service, there are many ways to help people around us who are less fortunate. Maybe through worship and prayer, as we learn and grow in our discipleship ways that enrich that light in your life. Or maybe through letting the light of love guide us as we deal with people we couldn't love without it.

Either way the fuse has been lit. You have been given the gift of the divine spark, the Body of Christ. It is in you, and the light is going on. Watch for it, celebrate it, and learn from it. You'll be surprised.

Calvary Lutheran Church, Rio Linda