Ephesians 5: 8 – 10: “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord.”
My husband worked the midnight shift for 42 years. I was alone at night for 42 years and I was afraid of the dark. Seeking God with all my heart, He answered my prayers, and I was able to sleep with the light out successfully about 10 years after I became a Christian.
Then it happened.
It was a around 9 p.m. Friday night, and the rain had not let up for a week. After a 12-hour day at work, I wandered to my car, aware that each step was taking a toll. The traffic on Woodside Road was particularly heavy, a car stopped short in front of me, and I slowed down too.
A white pickup truck was following me. I was unaware of anything wrong, yet the man inside the truck started honking at me, and I could see he was screaming as I viewed him in the rear view mirror. He sped up, got in front of me, and stomped on the breaks. I was driving our manual transmission Jetta, and instantly applied all my training from years of Autocross and Time Trialing with our old Porsche. I maneuvered away easily. This infuriated him and he gunned the motor, positioning himself beside me and proceeded to hit the side of my car with his truck. I sped away and he chased me.
When he was in front of me, I saw his license plate, and started to shout the numbers to myself so I would remember them. I went in and out of parking lots with him chasing me, desperately crying out the license plate numbers, and hollering to God repeatedly, what should I do? Where should I go?
I yelled at God: I can’t go home! I can’t go to my mom’s house! Where shall I go? Screaming the license plate numbers again, I kept slithering in and out of tight places to get away.
Suddenly, I remembered where our friends lived. I hurried there, got out of the car and ran to the door. The pickup truck was right behind me, the man leapt from his truck and started chasing me up the walk until he saw me pound on the door – he bolted away in the truck and my friends opened the door. I shrieked the license plate numbers repeatedly and finally, my friends realized I wanted them to write it down. Then, out of breath, I panted 911! 911! 911!
The police came and we gave them the license plate number. I had no witnesses. The police told me that I could put an ad in the paper, asking witnesses to come forward, but they cautioned that the pickup truck guy would then know where I lived. The officers said they would go speak to him (he lived close by) and that would be the end of it. I called Al and he came over and hugged me, and went off to work. I called my pastor, and he prayed with me over the phone. I went home, got into bed and turned out the light.
Even though it took months to stop quaking every time I saw a white pickup truck, I slept well with the light off. I realized that I would not really know God’s deliverance until it was tested. This was quite a test. The skills I learned when I walked around in the darkness came into play when I was in the light. His light was in me. I could sleep in the dark.
Life Application Study Bible Notes on Ephesians 5:8: “As people who have light from the Lord, your actions should reflect your faith. You should live above reproach morally so that you will reflect God’s goodness to others. Jesus stressed this truth in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:15, 16 ‘Let your light shine before others that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in Heaven’).”
My actions should reflect my faith. But, I really hate the word should. It is as if I should all over myself and it stinks. I don’t like should-ing on others either. Life is hard enough, right?
So, how can I direct my actions to reflect the light I have? How can I show my faith? How can I live above reproach, reflecting God’s goodness to others? That seems like a mountain I have no ability to climb.
Jesus’ words recorded in John 14:15-17: “If you love Me, keep My commands. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of Truth. The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you.”
The implications of Him being in us are staggering. First off, I cannot imagine One of such holiness wanting to live inside of the darkness in me. Gratefully, He has already addressed that. Jesus came as God-With-Us, God-in-Flesh, and took all the punishment our waywardness deserves. He then pronounced us clean to the Father, who adopted us as His children. He explained that on our own, we are not able to approach God. Only with His say-so, can we enter the Throne Room and ask for mercy at the Throne of Grace.
Just as I would not be able to approach the President of the United States or the Queen of England without extensive background checks and approval, I cannot approach God simply because I want to. I need a Go-Between. I need Papers that say I am okay, that I am clean, and righteous, and beyond reproach. I know myself pretty well, and I cannot begin to believe I am any of those things. Amazingly, God Himself wants me to have an audience with Him, so He sent Jesus. Jesus died and rose again so that I would be pronounced holy, which gives me the ability to plead for mercy from the One Who Makes Me Who I AM. His sacrifice for me creates a relationship between the Almighty and me. Astounding! You were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.
Proclaimed light, no longer called darkness. How can I believe this? Even though I am who I am, He says I am okay. Once again, I must surrender my view of things; I must surrender my whole being and learn to receive all that God has for me. When I live in doubt, guilt and shame, it is hard to think of God wanting me hanging around. His Word says He delights in His Children. His Word says He has fully forgiven us and has made us complete in Christ. All He asks of us is that we believe Him. That sounds excessively easy.
Trying to compensate for our ‘darkness’ we often start striving to be worthy of the gift we have already received. The ‘never good enough syndrome’ (herein represented as NGES) makes us exhausted. It makes us crabby. It makes us think we do not fit in and no one wants us. NGES interrupts friendship, families and our sleep. Those plagued with NGES wear people out. They have to hear about our ill repute repeatedly. We unknowingly sabotage relationships to prove our unworthiness.
Live as children of light and find out what pleases the Lord. What can we do? We can dare to believe God says what He means. We can quit trying to be good enough and we can accept His goodness in our stead. We can cling to Jesus with everything in us and dare to believe the Hope that He offers. We can begin to uncover the purpose He has for our lives. We can walk with Him, talk with Him, and abide in Him. God’s Word says quit running around, stand firm and see what God has done for you. Accept the free gift, that was given to you at a great price, and you will never regret it.
This is what pleases the Lord: Believe. Accept. Receive. Go forth, child of the Light. You are no longer in darkness and distress. You are light in the Lord. Turn the light out, go to sleep.
My husband worked the midnight shift for 42 years. I was alone at night for 42 years and I was afraid of the dark. Seeking God with all my heart, He answered my prayers, and I was able to sleep with the light out successfully about 10 years after I became a Christian.
Then it happened.
It was a around 9 p.m. Friday night, and the rain had not let up for a week. After a 12-hour day at work, I wandered to my car, aware that each step was taking a toll. The traffic on Woodside Road was particularly heavy, a car stopped short in front of me, and I slowed down too.
A white pickup truck was following me. I was unaware of anything wrong, yet the man inside the truck started honking at me, and I could see he was screaming as I viewed him in the rear view mirror. He sped up, got in front of me, and stomped on the breaks. I was driving our manual transmission Jetta, and instantly applied all my training from years of Autocross and Time Trialing with our old Porsche. I maneuvered away easily. This infuriated him and he gunned the motor, positioning himself beside me and proceeded to hit the side of my car with his truck. I sped away and he chased me.
When he was in front of me, I saw his license plate, and started to shout the numbers to myself so I would remember them. I went in and out of parking lots with him chasing me, desperately crying out the license plate numbers, and hollering to God repeatedly, what should I do? Where should I go?
I yelled at God: I can’t go home! I can’t go to my mom’s house! Where shall I go? Screaming the license plate numbers again, I kept slithering in and out of tight places to get away.
Suddenly, I remembered where our friends lived. I hurried there, got out of the car and ran to the door. The pickup truck was right behind me, the man leapt from his truck and started chasing me up the walk until he saw me pound on the door – he bolted away in the truck and my friends opened the door. I shrieked the license plate numbers repeatedly and finally, my friends realized I wanted them to write it down. Then, out of breath, I panted 911! 911! 911!
The police came and we gave them the license plate number. I had no witnesses. The police told me that I could put an ad in the paper, asking witnesses to come forward, but they cautioned that the pickup truck guy would then know where I lived. The officers said they would go speak to him (he lived close by) and that would be the end of it. I called Al and he came over and hugged me, and went off to work. I called my pastor, and he prayed with me over the phone. I went home, got into bed and turned out the light.
Even though it took months to stop quaking every time I saw a white pickup truck, I slept well with the light off. I realized that I would not really know God’s deliverance until it was tested. This was quite a test. The skills I learned when I walked around in the darkness came into play when I was in the light. His light was in me. I could sleep in the dark.
Life Application Study Bible Notes on Ephesians 5:8: “As people who have light from the Lord, your actions should reflect your faith. You should live above reproach morally so that you will reflect God’s goodness to others. Jesus stressed this truth in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:15, 16 ‘Let your light shine before others that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in Heaven’).”
My actions should reflect my faith. But, I really hate the word should. It is as if I should all over myself and it stinks. I don’t like should-ing on others either. Life is hard enough, right?
So, how can I direct my actions to reflect the light I have? How can I show my faith? How can I live above reproach, reflecting God’s goodness to others? That seems like a mountain I have no ability to climb.
Jesus’ words recorded in John 14:15-17: “If you love Me, keep My commands. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of Truth. The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you.”
The implications of Him being in us are staggering. First off, I cannot imagine One of such holiness wanting to live inside of the darkness in me. Gratefully, He has already addressed that. Jesus came as God-With-Us, God-in-Flesh, and took all the punishment our waywardness deserves. He then pronounced us clean to the Father, who adopted us as His children. He explained that on our own, we are not able to approach God. Only with His say-so, can we enter the Throne Room and ask for mercy at the Throne of Grace.
Just as I would not be able to approach the President of the United States or the Queen of England without extensive background checks and approval, I cannot approach God simply because I want to. I need a Go-Between. I need Papers that say I am okay, that I am clean, and righteous, and beyond reproach. I know myself pretty well, and I cannot begin to believe I am any of those things. Amazingly, God Himself wants me to have an audience with Him, so He sent Jesus. Jesus died and rose again so that I would be pronounced holy, which gives me the ability to plead for mercy from the One Who Makes Me Who I AM. His sacrifice for me creates a relationship between the Almighty and me. Astounding! You were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.
Proclaimed light, no longer called darkness. How can I believe this? Even though I am who I am, He says I am okay. Once again, I must surrender my view of things; I must surrender my whole being and learn to receive all that God has for me. When I live in doubt, guilt and shame, it is hard to think of God wanting me hanging around. His Word says He delights in His Children. His Word says He has fully forgiven us and has made us complete in Christ. All He asks of us is that we believe Him. That sounds excessively easy.
Trying to compensate for our ‘darkness’ we often start striving to be worthy of the gift we have already received. The ‘never good enough syndrome’ (herein represented as NGES) makes us exhausted. It makes us crabby. It makes us think we do not fit in and no one wants us. NGES interrupts friendship, families and our sleep. Those plagued with NGES wear people out. They have to hear about our ill repute repeatedly. We unknowingly sabotage relationships to prove our unworthiness.
Live as children of light and find out what pleases the Lord. What can we do? We can dare to believe God says what He means. We can quit trying to be good enough and we can accept His goodness in our stead. We can cling to Jesus with everything in us and dare to believe the Hope that He offers. We can begin to uncover the purpose He has for our lives. We can walk with Him, talk with Him, and abide in Him. God’s Word says quit running around, stand firm and see what God has done for you. Accept the free gift, that was given to you at a great price, and you will never regret it.
This is what pleases the Lord: Believe. Accept. Receive. Go forth, child of the Light. You are no longer in darkness and distress. You are light in the Lord. Turn the light out, go to sleep.
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