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Good Shepherd Lutheran Church Today's Frontline Devotion Wednesday, January 14, 2004 Shine |
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Frontline Devotion for Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2004, by Penny Risen
Bible text:
Psalm 27: 1
It slips past a tangle of dead leaves in the twigs and brush, rising to
out-stretched tree bows. Morning light is gentle, easing its way down the grass,
onto walls and homes. So soft, I almost can breathe in the dawn like a breeze.
Long, thin slivers of gold and pink reward me on the walk from driveway to
house with the newspapers. It's a quiet yet glorious reminder that I've been
given a new chance, the light that will help lead me through the day.
Early risers get this bonus. No, not a chance to be the first up and make the
coffee "the right way" or to get a jump on the traffic. At sunrise, the light of
a new day tugs you like a friend's hand from the darkness. The darkness is gone,
forgotten. The darkness is banished. Shine!
We all have dark places in our hearts: Weighty problems with money, marriage,
family or health certainly are the biggest spots of gray. But small woes ---
jealously, stress, doubt, demons of our own making and sins of weakness we
aren't willing to let go --- cast their own weary shadows.
God didn't put these dark places there, but He can help us open our hearts to
the light. Taking the darkness away, that is Jesus' job on Earth. We need to
ask Him to bring light to our darkness. He's waiting, poised, just outside our
door like the sunrise to lead us into the light.
Psalm 27 assures us: "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" Call out in
faith to banish the bleakness you hold in your heart. You needn't live in a dark
world. Pray, be with a friend, worship, seek solace in Scripture or nature or
exercise, sing --- just don't suffer in the darkness alone.
Two hymns --- one of darkness and one of light --- make good bookends for the
seasons of Advent and Epiphany. We've waited for Jesus Christ's birth, bringing
His light into the world, and now we're ready to shout His message of love and
new life.
The first song is slow, gentle and contemplative: A plea, "Perhaps if I give
Jesus my heart, it will take the chill off the winter's night and lead me from
darkness."
"In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone; snow had fallen,
Snow on snow, snow on snow, in the bleak midwinter, long ago.
What can I give him, poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;
If I were a wise man, I would do my part;
Yet what I can I give him: give my heart."
---
IN THE BLEAK MIDWINTER, composed by
Gustav Holtz, set as hymn by
Harold Darke, from a poem by
Christina Rosetti
The other song is bright, filled with energy and hope: An affirmation, "You've
set my heart on fire and I praise You for driving out the darkness!"
"Lord, the light of your love is shining,
In the midst of the darkness shining;
Jesus, light of the world, shine upon us,
Set us free by the truth you now bring us.
Shine on me, shine on me!"
---
SHINE, JESUS, SHINE, by
Graham Kendrick from With One Voice
hymnal
Prayer for the Day: Dear Lord, lead me from darkness to joyfully do Your Will. I'm a child who needs Your light every day to find love and to give love. Help me to shine with the Spirit for others, that their darkness is banished each dawn. Amen.
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All are welcome to join and share in our Devotional Ministry on the "Frontlines" of the world. Frontline Devotions are sent via email daily. Sign up by clicking on the box to the left. Pastor Dave welcomes feedback. Contact him at pastordave@goodshepherdonline.org. |
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