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Walk In The Light
Andrea Lende • June 6, 2020
John 8:12
Walk in the Light
You can also listen to the meditation and prayer at: https://anchor.fm/andrea-lende/episodes/Walk-In-The-Light-ef34ol
Daily Word:
John 8:12
“Once more Jesus addressed the crowd. He said, I am the Light of the world. He who follows Me will not be walking in the dark, but will have the Light which is Life.”
As I wake to a new day, every day, my desire is to follow God.
I have succumbed to my own emotions enough in my lifetime.
And when I have done that, I missed the mark.
I missed God’s best for me.
I missed His presence.
I missed His leading and guidance.
I missed being able to fully receive His love.
So, now I desperately want to follow the Lord.
I want to be obedient to Him.
I want Him to lead and guide me.
I want to fully receive His love.
I want to walk in the Light.
I want to find Life.
Real life-giving Life as Jesus meant to give us through His death.
As I read this verse, it truly spoke to me.
Jesus said, “I am the Light of the world. He who follows Me will not be walking in the dark, but will have the Light which is Life.”
These days are difficult to maneuver in peace.
Dark times for many.
However, I desire to walk in the Light.
If I follow the Lord, He will lead me to the Light.
Then I can be the Light for others.
There are two tasks we are given here on earth:
Worship the Lord.
Serve others.
I cannot serve if I am not fully equipped to serve.
As I seek and follow the King, He equips me.
Today I choose to seek Jesus, walk in His Light into the Life He has died to give me.
May you find that as You follow Jesus, He will lead you into the Light and give you Life.
Daily Prayer:
O Lord, my God, thank You for sending Your Son to be the Light for me to find in the darkness. Thank You that He continues to lead me into the Life that You have for me. Help me seek You, Lord, and be led and guided by Your Light. As I find You, I can help others find You. Equip me so that I can serve others, Lord. Help me do Your will and walk into Your perfect plan. I desire to be used by You. Help me seek You before I seek and satisfy my emotions and desires. May Your desires become mine. As we all find You, Lord, we can be the light for others and light up this world. May we cast Your Light on this planet we call home as we wait to come home to You. Help us worship You, Lord, and give You praise as we long to be in Your presence for eternity. Use us, O God, and keep our hearts soft toward You so that we are obedient to You. Help us bless someone this day. Thank You for hearing our prayer.
Answer: I AM with you and all people who call Me to reside in their hearts, and you will be My Light as you traverse this world.
Response: Please live in my heart and all You call to be Yours, Lord.
We start a New Year! How exciting! Paul had just finished telling the Ephesians to put off their old nature. They had been run around by their feelings and desires. He told them to be renewed in their spirit. The Amplified Bible defines this to be “having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude.” As we say goodbye to this year, let us put on the new and leave the old behind. We have an opportunity to reflect on what to bring forward into this New Year.
This is a great message for the New Year. We can be in control of our own words. As a mother, I used to tell my children to use their words to explain what was happening in their minds. I tried to help them find the right words. Words that would help the situation and not make it worse. I must do the same thing when talking to them. It’s important to use words that do not damage their spirits. Words that lift up instead of tear down. Even though my children have grown, I still want to be careful how I speak to them because my worlds will impact them for the rest of their lives.
As we approach the New Year, it is a perfect time to take inventory of what part of our lives, our hearts, and our souls are not bearing fruit. What can we give up as this year comes to a close? What do we need to give to the Lord for His cleansing and pruning? The answers to these questions take time. Time with the Lord. We are creatures of routines and habits which serve us well. But we can also change our routines and habits to serve us and the Lord better. So, we can ask God to show us what He wants us to give up so that He can have more of us.
I cannot think of a better verse to meditate on as we approach the New Year. Jesus said, "the kingdom of God is within you [in your hearts] and among you [surrounding you]." For so many years I believed I had to wait to go to heaven to experience the kingdom of God. I have longed to step into heaven and meet the Lord and His Son. However, as we read the Gospels and study Jesus and all that He said, we begin to understand the kingdom of God is all around us. The kingdom of God is within.
Paul wrote to the Colossians and told them he was praying for them. He prayed they would be refreshed, renewed, and invigorated. He also prayed they would be strengthened. May his prayer be heard by the Lord God Almighty on our behalf today just as it was received two thousand years ago. God is the Source of all things beautiful and wonderful. There is no shortage of renewal, refreshment, or inspiration in His kingdom. And as the Creator of this universe, He continues to pour all good things into His people. Paul wrote that refreshment and strength are needed so we may have endurance.
This verse is the perfect verse to reflect on as Christmas comes to a close. The Lord sent His Son to us. He sent Him to this world as a babe. Jesus was given the task of growing up. A difficult one for all of us. He endured the awkward stages we all go through as we grow past them. I look back at old picture and cringe, yes, I cringe. This life provides plenty of opportunities to feel awkward and just plain weird, but our Father loves us as though we are perfect every day of our lives. This is why Jesus came. He came to make us perfect in God’s sight.
God made Himself flesh so He could take away the sins of the world. The story of the very first Christmas was humble, yet the most powerful and loving birth ever recorded in history. All humanity changed in an instant. When Jesus was born, love filled the earth. Love came down and lifted us up. The angels came to tell the shepherds of this beautiful birth. The stars in the heavens also told the story. As we do all tasks that we do to ensure a beautiful Christmas day, may we remember the miracle that God sent long ago. The miracle of all miracles.
The first Christmas was going to be documented, so that it could be read many times over for all Christmas’ to come. It was also documented so the prophecy of the Messiah’s birth would be known to be fulfilled. Prophets of old foretold Jesus would come from the house of David. They also prophesied that He would be born in Bethlehem. And all this came to pass. Even though Jesus would be known as a Nazarene, His beginning began in Bethlehem. God’s divine plan was set in motion with the first census while Mary was at the end of her pregnancy.
What a wonderful passage to read during Christmas week. Our passage touched my heart as I read it through the lens of Jesus’ birth. “It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling and restoring the world to favor with Himself.” We have so much to be thankful for in these few short words, “restoring the world to favor with Himself.” So undeserved and yet so graciously given. We are offered favor with the Lord. Imagine having favor with the almighty God, the Creator of the universe. Jesus chose to leave heaven’s door where all was perfect. He chose to be born into this dusty messy world.
Jesus had just spoken to a fig tree and deemed it unworthy to live because it had no fruit on it. His disciples were amazed when they saw the fig tree wither and die. Then the Lord talked to them about prayer and belief. He told them that whatever they asked for, if they had the faith and belief, they would receive it. I remember the day I started hearing music and lyrics. I had just bowed my head at the piano and asked if the Lord would bless praise and worship music. As soon as I prayed that prayer, the Lord bestowed the gift of song writing upon me.