A devotional poem by Pam Scott, associate treasurer
She lays her fiery red head on a cotton candy pillow
And sinks down into the night
Her work completed for the day
Or is it?
In reality she slips from one horizon
Into the next
To bring her light to a new place
A new set of people.
The old man in the moon
Reflecting off her vivid color
Manifests in the sky as a tangerine image
Which becomes brighter and lighter
As she moves away below the line of sight.
The lesser light in the sky
With the gravitational pull
To move oceans
As we: you and me.
Who of us are the leaders?
The front of the pack
Guiding, motivating
Giving direction to the team in your environment.
Who are the lesser light?
Reflecting the light God put inside us
Finding our own space to
Quietly use our influence to move people.
We are all in a particular season
As the sun and the moon follow their rhythms and cycles
So our lives are lived in seasons and times
Though perhaps less predictable than the sun and moon
Seasons of joy
Seasons of change
Seasons of financial prosperity
Seasons of financial distress
Seasons of being the parents of young children
Seasons of watching our adult children develop in their own lives
Seasons of care giving
Seasons of starting new jobs
Seasons of planning for retirement
Seasons of success
Seasons of failure
Seasons of growth
Seasons of anxiety
Seasons of trust
Seasons of doubt
Seasons of loss
Solomon the wise king wrote:
For everything there is a season.
Our seasons of life become our ministry.
There is nothing new under the sun.
What I experience, someone else has already experienced.
What you experience, someone else will come after you to experience.
We like to know that we are not alone in our feelings
Not alone in our experiences.
Open and vulnerable sharing of our experience can make a profound difference in someone’s life.
I don’t want to see your perfection. I want to see your weakness, and see how you worked through it.
Do you think that is why the Bible is so full of the stories of human failings?
How could we have hope if all we saw were perfect people?
How could we put our trust in God, if we did not feel a need for God?
For my strength is made perfect in weakness. I will glorify in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 2 Corinthians 12:9
Vulnerability is your superpower.
Like the moon’s ability to have a gravitational pull over the whole ocean
Your willingness to share has the power to move through the world
A rippling power that will move multitudes
Our seasons
They are the reason we live
They are our purpose in life.
God has worked in my life.
He is working in yours too.
Be the light, today, that God created you to be.
Activity Prompt
At family worship time especially in the evening when it is dark, pull out flashlights and turn off the lights in your living room and/or house. Take a tour of your house, shining the light on different things you are thankful for. Take time to pray through these blessings. As appropriate, pray for those who don't have the same blessings. Finally, pray for each person in your family that they may have and share the light of Jesus in their lives.
Bonus prompt: Do a Bible word study on the word "light."
Prayer Prompt
Lord, You continually bring light into our dark world. You are the Source of light. Even in the shadows of the valley of death, the shadows must have a light source. You are the Light of the world who cannot be hidden. Help us, Lord, each person in our family, to accept Your light into our lives and to share Your light in our daily interactions. Amen.
