Shining Your Light

I want to tell you a story today.

About three years ago, I was taking a group of students to a weeklong church camp during the summer. 

Now for some reason, during that summer, I had this press upon my heart… I had this word that kept coming to my mind, and I didn’t know why.

That word was light.

For some reason, I felt this press upon my heart to be light… to be a light in the world. And I prayed and prayed and prayed every day to God, asking Him to help me be a light. I wasn’t sure how He was going to use it, but I knew it was something He was pressing on me.

It came to the week we were going off to this church camp, and the night came where we all sat around the fire and sang worship songs. The pastor stood up and encouraged us to use the time to pray… to pray with each other or sit and be with God, praying to ourselves.

This little boy came up to me and tapped me on the shoulder. He was probably around 6 or 7 years old, and I had never seen the boy before in my life.

He looked at me and asked, “Can I please pray with you?”

“Absolutely!” I said.

We went off and stood beside each other as I said a prayer for us. He had his little hands folded and his little eyes closed, and then he spoke these words, “Dear Father, thank you for bringing Madison into my life tonight (he had to ask for my name hahaha). When I look at Madison and all around her I just see these radiant beams of light. I can see You working within her. Thank you for these beautiful minutes and moments with Madison. Amen.”

Tears filled my eyes.

Then a couple of weeks later I came home to my mom in the kitchen. She looked at me and asked, “Did you post something recently?”

“Uhh I don’t know… why?” I asked.

“Well I ran into so and so at the grocery store (it was someone who used to work at my high school)… and they said when they saw what you posted, they just saw this light. And it was exactly what they needed. She was tearing up as she told me,” Mom said.

I just thought, wow. God is so good. And whether we realize it or not, He is using us even the smallest of things. He has put a light in you, and you are shining whether you know it or not. What may seem like small insignificant things can be totally used by God in big, extremely significant ways.

So I don’t know what your marriage looks like. Or what your friendships look like. Or your job. Or your relationship with your kids. Or what this season of life looks like for you. But here’s what I do know: God is using you. You may not know it, you may feel like what you’re doing is so insignificant, but you are a light. John 1:5 tells us, “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness does not overcome it” and God has filled you with that light! That light shines brightest in the darkest places.

Matthew 5:14-15 tells us, “You are the light of the world. Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

God is using you. Believe that. And let that light shine no matter what storms try to blow it out.