we are the light
A quick stop in Goodwill yesterday landed a burgundy t-shirt in my laundry pile today with the words BE THE LIGHT Matthew 5:14 in bold white letters.
And then the song came on during my run:
"We can hear it every day
There's a call we can't escape
From the closest corners, to the furthest borders
Send us out beyond the walls
To illuminate the ones in the back street alleys
In the hopeless valleys
We'll bring the truth
Time to move against the grain
We will run and not grow faint
Cause the hour is heavy and the fields are ready
Filled with power forged in faith
As the heavens start to break
Let the darkness scatter and strongholds shatter
Love is the answer we take
To the darkest places into the shadows
Into the heart of the battle
We don't have to fear the night
Cause we are the light
We are the light
We carry the fire into the cold
To the ends of the earth we'll go
Together take on the night
Cause we are the light
We are the light"
-Unspoken, We are the Light
Yesterday my run finished with "Carry Your Candle":
There is a candle in every soul
Some brightly burning, some dark and cold
There is a Spirit who brings fire
Ignites a candle and makes His home
Frustrated brother, see how he’s tried to
Light his own candle some other way
See now your sister, she’s been robbed and lied to
Still holds a candle without a flame
We are a family whose hearts are blazing
So let’s raise our candles and light up the sky
Praying to our Father, in the name of Jesus
Make us a beacon in darkest times
Carry your candle, run to the darkness
Seek out the helpless, deceived and poor
Hold out your candle for all to see it
Take your candle, and go light your world
-Chris Rice
And it was just all the reminders I needed that even though it's dark out there -- culturally, politically -- we do not need to fear the dark because we have the Light. And because we have the Light, we are called to BE THE LIGHT... to carry the candle into the darkness, to light the candles of the hurting, to bring the Truth to the valleys and the Light to the shadows.
It's February in Illinois, so we are really aware of the impact of light. Light comes pouring into our house in different places at different times of day and everywhere it goes, it brings me warmth, peace, and joy. You cannot be in the presence of glowy light and not be amazed at what it does to its surroundings. And that's our calling as Believers. We're not called to become what's around us, to plateau at the status quo. We're called to change what's around us - bring the Truth, change the culture, share the hope. Light overcomes darkness. A city on a hill cannot be hid. We are the city.

Verses about light from our candle-pouring event last fall:
John 1:5
I John 1:7
John 8:12
Psalm 119:105
I John 1:5
Psalm 27:1
Genesis 1:4
Ephesians 5:8-9
John 1:9
II Corinthians 4:6
Ephesians 5:13-14
Psalm 36:9
Matthew 4:16
Micah 7:8
Proverbs 6:23
Luke 1:79
Psalm 18:28
John 9:5
Matthew 5:14
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