Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK … Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with Jason Gray singing … Glow In the Dark … poignantly singing of how God wants us to shine the light of Christlikeness in this world, darkened by evil influences. … and then ON TO THIS LINK to hear Joy Williams singing, Do They See Jesus In Me, expressing our Lord’s desire for others to see His light in all we think, say, and do.
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Highlight Verse[s]: Philippians 2:14-15 [NLT] … 14 Do everything without complaining and arguing, 15 so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God,shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people.
… We, as Christians, should shine brightly into this dark world!
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Highlight Passage [context]: Philippians 2:12-18 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… God, thru Paul, expresses how we are to shine Christ’s light into a very dark world.
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Reference Passage : … Matthew 5:14-16 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… As Christians, we are to be - or become - the “Light of the World” for all to see Christ in the way we live.
Reference Passage : … John 14:21 [NLT] … 21 Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal myself to each of them.”
… We cannot show Christ’s love to others, shining His Light, unless we obey Him. Our light is diminished by our sin.
My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Arthur Jackson, uses a story about a teacher becoming a shining light in the midst of very dark circumstances. The ODB author wrote … In the summer of 2015, a group from our church was sobered by what we saw in Mathare, one of the slums in Nairobi, Kenya. We visited a school with dirt floors, rusting metal walls, and wooden benches. But against the backdrop of extremely humble surroundings, one person stood out.
Her name was Brilliant, and the name couldn’t have fit her better. She was an elementary school teacher who possessed joy and determination that matched her mission. Colorfully dressed, her appearance and the joy with which she instructed and encouraged the children were stunning.
Taking in Jason Gray’s linked song and the Scriptures above, today’s ODB entry challenges me with the very convicting question as to whether I’m shining Christ’s light bright enough, overcoming the darkness of my sin nature, so that others can see Christ in me and dispel some of the darkness of this world (as Joy Williams sings in the second linked song).
Hey, dear one, let’s go out and reflect our Lord’s perfect light for others to be able to see Him in the way we live our lives today.
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My THANKFULNESS: … Oh Abba Father, … thank You, Lord, … for being THE Light of the world.
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My Prayer Today: Oh Abba Father, … King Jesus, … I pray, Lord, that all reading here can, and will, join me to reflect a bit of His brightness into this very dark world today … and then even more tomorrow. … Amen
Blogger Note: Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled “Our Daily Bread,” distributed online via email by RBC Ministries. If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.
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