April 7, 2010, John 1

Key Verse:

He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.

(John 1:8)

Central Truth:

God's light surrounds us each and every day.


A few weeks ago I had the privilege of visiting both my son and daughter for a Dad day at school. The kids sang songs and gave us gifts, and the teachers worked very hard to show how the kids appreciated us. I could look over and see my son with a big smile on his face, just excited that I was there. My daughter would just come up and hug me and tell me how much she loved me.

My oldest son gets in the car each morning on the way to school, and we talk about what sport he's playing, what his friends are doing, or the test that he may have coming up. He's getting a little older now, so he always says "I love you" before he opens the door to get out. (Wouldn't want others to hear it or anything . . . .) But I know that he enjoys our conversation time, and I think he misses it as much as I do if I don't get to take him to school one morning.

My wife and I have been blessed with three beautiful, healthy children. We have jobs, a loving supportive marriage, a roof over our heads, and food on the table. Life doesn't always go our way, but we are thankful for what we have.

God shines his light on people in so many different ways. Listed above are some of the ways that I see his light in my life every day. It may not be anything bigger than the smile that one of my children flashes to me every now and then, but I take it as His way of letting me know that He is there. Now it's up to me to share His love.

John was given a big purpose. John was to spread the word about a Jesus that he had never seen and sell people on the fact that He was coming soon and they had better prepare. He knew that Jesus was the Savior. He had an unbelievable faith in his mission, even though God didn't promise him worldly fame or wealth if he would go out and preach His word. God didn't promise him an easy life, but John knew that he would have eternal life. John knew that he couldn't save people, but that Jesus could. He knew that he wasn't the light, but he had to describe the light. He had to make others be able to see the light in a dark world.

So many times we take for granted the blessings that we have and how God has shined His light in our lives. We forget about those little things that give us hope in a cruel world. We don't share with others how God loves us in so many little ways each day. We seek for God to do big miracles, and we don't give Him the credit that He deserves for the little things.

I have seen God's light in my life, and I know that someday He will come back to take me to an eternal life with Him. Am I any different than John? Were we not both put here with the purpose of sharing God's Word and His love with all of those around us? Didn't we both know that we was coming?

I challenge you today to look at how God's light has shined in your life and share that with someone.