Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Isaiah 60:1 Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.
ARISE AND SHINE (2)
"Rise and Shine!" My mom would often wake us up with those words. I often thought, "NO! NOT YET. Just let me sleep a little longer." We may realize we have to get up for work or school, but do you feel like shining? We might even be tempted to ask, "How can I shine this early in the morning?" If I would have asked my mom that question she would probably say something like, "Because the sun is up and it's a beautiful day."
We might want to ask a similar question of God: "How can I shine when I don’t feel like it?" Let's face it, we don't always feel like shining. How can I be happy and cheerful when I'm feeling sad and depressed? How can you shine when you are overwhelmed with work and have stress at home? What about when you are down because of some loss in your life? It's hard to be cheerful and upbeat at times like that. We are more likely to have a short fuse and snap at others.
God gives us a similar answer to my mom's. He tells us how we can Arise and Shine even when we don't feel like it. Listen again to Isaiah 60:1: "Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you."
The Son is up and it is a beautiful day. "The glory of the Lord" can be seen all around us and in every area of our life. "The whole earth is full of His glory" (Isaiah 6:3). The glory of the Lord is especially seen in His grace and love given to us in Christ.
God is not just telling you to shake yourself off and put on a happy face. God gives us a real reason to Shine. He has SAVED us. He has rescued us from death and hell. He has delivered us from every trouble. Not only that but He has brought constant love and joy into our lives. Jesus makes our life good. The key is to focus on Him. Look out of your dark gloom and see the Son shining on you. It is a glorious day, the day of God's grace.
