Walking in the Light

 August 27, 2024

Tuesday

I have an indoor/outdoor thermometer. This morning the indoor receiver lost the signal with the outdoor sensor. At first I couldn't get them to reconnect. The problem was that the channel the receiver was trying to receive from had been changed. When I place the outdoor sensor on the same channel as the receiver the signal was received again.

It is too bad that we don't notice when we stop receiving communication with God. So often, we are like parents that are so busy shopping that we don't notice that our child has wandered away from us. We may know that something is amiss but we aren't quite sure what it is until we notice that our child is nowhere in sight. It is a shame that we don't miss Him.

Of course, we are the children that have wandered away. We aren't aware of the dangers around us. We aren't aware that we are lost. We are just fascinated with the things immediately in front of us and do not think of the consequences of wandering off.

The Bible says that Jesus is the light shining in the darkness. 

John 1:5 (NASB 2020) ⁵ And the Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not grasp it.

It seems we would miss the light when we wandered away from Him. Darkness is just the absence of light. We are no longer the children of darkness if we have received the light. However, our flesh still doesn't see things that way. Our flesh still loves the darkness.

John 3:19 (NASB 2020) ¹⁹ And this is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the Light; for their deeds were evil.

It is only through the Spirit that we will see our own deeds as evil. The Light shines on the evil and exposes it. We don't see our sin as progressing. We are like King David who simply stayed on the roof watching Bathsheba rather than looking the other way. Who would know? What was the harm? It was that simple decision to see only that which was before him that led to serious consequences. He wandered away without knowing it.

Today you will either walk in the light or wander in the darkness. The darkness is subtle. The dimming of the light will be almost unnoticeable until you find yourself hoping the light never comes back on. A sudden light hurts the eyes. You might dread that moment. But it is this exposure that you will need if you wander into the darkness. You will never find your way home in the darkness.

We can't be like soldiers who are unaware that the enemy wants to destroy us. We must always be on our guard. The darkness will not overcome the Light but it just might overcome us. The awareness that we might fall is necessary to make sure that we keep our feet. 

So, make sure that you are connected to the Light right now. Resolve that you will continue in it all day. Ask God for warnings if you start to stray. And sleep tonight knowing that you have been with the Lord.