Hid in the Light of Christ

I was reading and praying last night and I think I made an interesting little connection between light and being "hid with Christ in God."

I prayed that the light of God, Christ, would come upon you and asked that the darkness be driven away. Then I remembered how God shielded Moses and the Hebrews from the darkness during the 9th plague by shining the light on them. It then occurred to me that the light is God's way of hiding us.

We usually think of darkness or shadow when we think of hiding - as kids we hid in the closet or under the bed, somewhere dark where no one could see us. We hear people talk about evil hiding in the shadows and that we need to shine the light on the darkness to expose wicked deeds. But what if God hides us in the light?

I've heard darkness defined as the absence of light - darkness is nothing itself, but rather it's the absence of light. If God were to shield us - to hide us - from darkness, where would the best place be? In the shadows? Under a rock? No! It'd be in the light - in the radiance of His glorious love where "there is no darkness" and where "there is no night."

I'll pray that God hide you in His light, in His love, in His grace. I'll pray that the light of Christ be not hid from you. I'll pray that you feel that light on you - filling your thoughts and your body. I'll pray that His light pass not from you. I'll pray that His light radiate throughout your day and throughout your life. I'll pray that you see His light and that you will know no absence of light - know no darkness. I'll pray that your faith in Christ expand and grow deeper.

And I'll pray that Paul's words be fulfilled in your life - "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord." You do live as a child of the light - and "for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth."

Dear God - the Father of us all.

Fill our hearts and lives with your love. Purify our hearts so that we may know You better. Purify our lives so that we see only You. Let us hear your angels each moment of each day. Let us see the unabated light and love that you send to us each moment. Let us know of your omnipotence and your presence. Let no darkness come between You and us, your image. And if darkness seems to encompass round about us, let us turn our gaze to heaven - to the light - as Daniel did when surrounded by evil in the pit. Establish us in your grace, in your love - and in the most holy faith. Plant our feet on your rock - the "new doctrine" that your Son taught, the "substance of things hoped for."

“Sorry, I don’t love you enough…”

“Sorry, I don’t love you enough…”

by Laura King

Sorry, I don’t love you enough
To ask you to do your chores.
Who needs self-respect from working hard,
When you can have a sense of entitlement instead?

Sorry, I don’t love you enough
To tell you that you can’t have everything that you want.
I’ll make myself feel less guilty by giving in,
And set you up for financial difficulties later on.

Sorry, I don’t love you enough
To teach you not to be selfish.
When your relationships fail,
You’ll find out that it’s not all about you.

Sorry, I don’t love you enough
To give you the love and affection that you crave.
Instead you can go from relationship to relationship
Without ever finding what you’re looking for.

Sorry, I don’t love you enough
To insist that you treat me with respect.
When you can’t figure out why you keep losing jobs,
You’ll learn the importance of respecting those in authority.

Sorry, I don’t love you enough
To punish you for your bad behavior.
I’ll let the police give you the consequences
That I was too lazy to dispense.

Sorry, I don’t love you enough
To show you what a good relationship with God is like.
A strong sense of morality is overrated.
Who wants to feel guilty about their lives anyway

You may love me now, but
You won’t even like me later.
Instead of what is best for you,
I’ll do what is easier for me at the time.
I won’t think about the fact that I’m making
A miserable life for both of us in the end.

All because… I don’t love you enough.

Copyright 2009 Laura King. Used with permission.