I’m still basking in the glow of some fall break fun with our middle daughter. God set the trees of the smoky mountains and our hearts on fire as we inhaled His breathtakingly colorful palette on bright display.
In the hotel where we stayed, we slept much later than normal. Why? Because the window treatments made the room so incredibly dark. Good for sleeping? YES! But the darkness also tricked us into possibly missing what God had planned for us out in the light each day! Thankfully, we have alarms on our phones. Otherwise, we would have missed so much had we stayed in the dark.
Wake up Call
In the not-so-distant past, the hotel desks offered a “wake up call” service. Do you remember that? Well, God’s Word in Ephesians 5:14 rings out as a “wake up call” for us as His ladies of light to remember today:
“Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and the LIGHT of Christ will SHINE on you.” Ephesians 5:14
I’m so thankful for our daily wake up calls from God. I’m praying that even these few moments of written inspiration will wake us all up with His light. There’s no denying that this world keeps getting darker. But the questions for us are these: Are you sleeping or shining? Are you living wide awake as Christ’s ladies of the Light?
Light is who God is. Shine is what Christ does.
As His ladies, we must remember: Light is who God is. Shine is what Christ does. This truth is powerfully reflected in both God’s very first and last words.
In Genesis 1:3 “And God said “Let there be LIGHT! And there was LIGHT! And it was good.”
In Revelation 21:23-24 “And you will have no need for the sun or moon, for the glory of God will illuminate the city, and the Lamb will be its LIGHT. The nations will walk in its LIGHT.”
Whether your family acknowledges or celebrates Halloween, we can all agree that like October days, the darkness in increasing all around us. As believers, this world’s darkness reminds us of our dark past without Jesus and our bright present (and future) with Christ!
“For once you were in darkness, but now you are LIGHT in the Lord. Live as children (ladies) of the LIGHT!” Ephesians 5:8
Live as Ladies of the Light
How do we live as Ladies of THE LIGHT? There are as many answers to that question as there are people reading this blog. One way our family lives as children of light is how we respond to Halloween. Each year we go to the local “pumpkin patch” (celebrating the Lord of the harvest). Then Steve and our four (now grown) kiddos carve the pumpkin the same way each year—with the name of JESUS lighting up the smile. (see Blog photo) On Halloween night, we love to have all the lights on in our home, sit out with a fire-pit on our front driveway, our pumpkin glowing on the front porch. And guess what happens? Children and parents from all over the neighborhood come to visit us! We happily hand out YooHoo boxed drinks with stickers on them that read “It was YooHoo Jesus died for.” More than sweet treats, we want them to taste our sweet Savior. We want them to see THE Light!
What a joy to know that we have been chosen to be Ladies of Light. We are created and carved to be like that glowing pumpkin that shines Jesus into a dark world. We are called to live like houses with all the lights on.
2 Corinthians 4:6 “For God who said, “Let LIGHT shine out of darkness” has made His LIGHT to shine in our hearts so that we could know and show the glory of Jesus Christ.”
Although the Bible doesn’t describe us as His glowing pumpkins, it does describes us frequently as Christ’s home, His house. And if you and I are His house (with His light inside of us) then we are His Lighthouses! My grandmother was a lighthouse for the Lord. Her favorite life verse was:
Matthew 5:16 “Let your LIGHT so SHINE before others so that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in Heaven.”
I pray that God uses the truths in this blog as a beacon for you. And that my grandmother’s life verse sets the light of our Savior ablaze in your soul in the following ways:
“Let your light so shine before others.” Mom, you are God’s lighthouse to shine for PROTECTION
What does light protect against? Darkness! Like a lighthouse, God has set you in a dark world at a dark time to GUARD against—darkness. Lighthouses alert sailors to where shallow sea waters and rocky shorelines are present so they can avoid harm and peril. In the same way, God has set us as parents to guard our children—those who need His protection—against the dangerous elements of this dark world. When our homes are God’s lighthouses, our children and others feel safe. Darkness is scary, right? When there is a storm and the electricity goes out, our first response is to find LIGHT! The moment you turn on a flashlight or light a candle, it brings immediate hope, comfort, and peace, doesn’t it? God’s Word does the same thing as “a lamp to our feet and a light unto our path.”
Philippians 2 presents to us as parents the most important way to illuminate our hearts and homes in this dark world—“…hold out the Word of life” to our children. With that one bold action comes the promise that “children of God…will shine like stars in a crooked and depraved generation.” Heart of Womanhood Bible Studies are a designed to shine God’s light into hearts and homes as a powerful guard against spiritual darkness.
“So they may see your good works” Mom, you are God’s lighthouse to shine for DIRECTION
Lighthouses on a coastline are a fixed point that sailors depend on for direction. Lighthouses are GUIDES. In the same way, moms, God has set us as guides for our children. God’s perfect Word and our good works are providing direction for them to follow. Whether it is spiritual disciplines, relational confidence, or life skill development,
“All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, so that we may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 1 Timothy 3:16-17
Our Portraits of Womanhood Series applies God’s Word in practical ways to equip, teach, and train your daughters in life skills and spiritual disciplines by studying the lives of other Ladies of Light in the Bible. From cooking and cleaning, physical fitness and public speaking, manners and managing money…etc, each lesson from Proverbs 31 provides interactive guidance and direction in developing confidence to live as God’s ladies of light as we learn important life skills.
“And glorify your Father in heaven.” Mom, you are God’s lighthouse to shine for REFLECTION
Finally, lighthouses are created to guard and to guide…but they are also designed to be GLORIOUS! 2 Corinthians 4:7 paints this picture,
“We have this LIGHT shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars (pumpkins or lighthouses) containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God not from ourselves.”
What makes a lighthouse GLORIOUS? The LIGHT. What makes us GLORIOUS as a mom or daughter? Christ’s light shining BRIGHT in us. And in the same way that a lighthouse doesn’t receive any glory for itself, we live confident that our GLORY is simply a bright reflection of God. He gets all the glory for our lives and the lives of our children who also choose to walk in His light. God has chosen us, our families, our homes as His lighthouses in this dark world. Our confidence comes not from our perfection—but His reflection. As we simply allow Christ to shine, His light will dispel all darkness around us, in us, and through us. No matter what darkness you are facing, His light always overcomes darkness—always!
“The LIGHT shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.” John 1:5
One match makes a difference
Another fun place we have visited with our daughters is Kentucky’s Mammoth Cave National Park. It’s the longest cave system in the world! On official tours, after weaving through a maze of amazing rock formations and waterfalls, the guide leads you into the largest room in the cave. Yes, it’s Mammoth! Next, the guide turns out all the lights so everyone can experience what they call “total darkness!” And it’s totally true–you cannot see anything! Then comes my all-time favorite part. The guide lights a single match. And do you know what happens? The entire mammoth cave is lit up by one tiny flame!
If one small match can light up something that big, just think what God can do with thousands of moms and daughters studying His Word through Bible study together—shining on fire for Him! Even though we live in a world that may feel like “total darkness,” like Mammoth Cave, darkness can never extinguish the power of one shining match! Since light always overcomes darkness, God calls us out to shine! I love the way the Message version describes it in the verses leading up to Matthew 5:16:
“Here’s another way to put this: You are here to be LIGHT, bringing out the GOD COLORS in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We are going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. I make you LIGHT BEARERS, not to hide you under a bucket. No, I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I have put you on a hilltop, I have one command…SHINE!” Matthew 5:14-15
So, moms and daughters, this fall, as you light a candle in a pumpkin or turn on the lights in your house, remember your calling as God’s Ladies of the Light! Let’s not be found sleeping but shining!
As His ladies of light, SHINE ON because in God’s hands—one match makes a world of difference!
SHINE ON,
Kim Wigginton and the Heart of Womanhood Ministry Team
To further fan into flame Christ’s light in your hearts and homes, check out Heart of Womanhood Bible Studies at https://heartofwomanhood.org/about/
