The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

~John 1:5 NIV

The bears were gaining on me. I ran as hard as my three-year-old legs could go, barely keeping ahead of their big teeth and scary claws. In the darkness I screamed, “Daddy! Help me!”

Suddenly light flooded my bedroom, and I felt strong arms hug me close. “There aren’t any bears, sweetheart. You had a bad dream,” Daddy assured me, as he dried my tears. I fell asleep in his arms, knowing I was secure and that no bears would harm me, because my daddy was there with me.

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

~John 8:12 ESV

Just as I called out to my father to protect me when I was a child, I have since learned to call out to my Heavenly Father. He protects me, sustains me, gives me comfort, and is always with me. No matter what comes our way or threatens our well-being, He meets every need in our lives through His love, mercy, and grace.

God will never leave us to live in darkness if we follow Him. As His followers, He has given us “the light of life.” We can live victoriously in our Christian walk when we place our security in God and not in the false security of the world. As we serve God by serving others, we often seek new ways to serve Him. We find that we learn to love others more and, in doing so, learn to better serve them.

The Apostle Paul reminds us:

You were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord, so live your life as children of light. Light produces fruit that consists of every sort of goodness, justice, and truth.

~Ephesians 5:8-9 CEB

How wonderful it is that we can be children of the Light! Once we make the life-changing decision to accept Jesus’s free gift of salvation and begin to follow Him, we never have to walk in darkness again. He said we “have the light of life.” What comfort that gives us; what assurance we gain, when we know our Lord is leading us!

The light of Jesus shines through us and helps us to produce fruit. Just as light helps fruit grow in our gardens – good things like strawberries or watermelons – the light of the Lord produces fruit. His light consists of every kind of goodness, justice, and truth. In fact, according to Matthew 7:16, we are known by our fruits.

When we consider the nature of God, one of the words which come to mind immediately is goodness. This aspect is one of the basics of the Christian faith. Everything He does for us is for our good and for His glory. The gift of salvation is a good gift. Not only is God’s goodness reflected in Jesus’s death on the cross, but His incredible mercy is also evident, as well. In view of this, we have excellent opportunities daily to shine His light in such a way so others can be drawn to Jesus. We show goodness when we go out of our way to make a call to someone who is home-bound and lonely or to text them to let them know we are praying for them and to ask if we can pray about anything specific or if they need anything. Reaching out to others is an excellent way to shine the light of Jesus to the world around us.

Another product of God’s light is justice. He is a just God, and justice is important to Him. He expects it to be important to us, as well. Throughout the Bible, we see examples of what is right, what is wrong, and how to live justly. Living in the light of Jesus means we must get to know Him and learn what is important to Him. As children of light, we are to treat others with mercy and justice, following Jesus’s example. God loves it when we show kindness to others and do what is right. Being kind and considerate in our daily walk is an opportunity to bless others.

“What is truth?” In John 18:37-39 NKJV, Pilate asked this question of Jesus who, as a wrongly-accused prisoner, was brought before him. There is no record of Pilate receiving an answer from Jesus. A good many people today have a mistaken belief that truth is open for interpretation. Some think truth is relative; they believe that what truth means for one person is not necessarily truth for everybody. Jesus defined truth as God’s word in John 17:17. Those of us who live in the light understand truth to be just as Jesus defined it. We are called to be truthful. Someone I knew at one time liked to say, “The truth may not be what we want to hear. But, it’s still the truth.”

I am thankful for God’s protection and for his love and care. Knowing He is beside me in all the situations I face encourages me to depend on Him only. Just as the above verse tells us, I can produce fruit consisting of goodness, justice, and truth, as I continue to walk out my faith daily.

As children of the light of Jesus Christ, we can let our light shine in the darkness, and the darkness can never overcome it. We do not have to fear the bears the enemy sends into our lives. Jesus has overcome them.

List ways you can exhibit justice to others.

Heavenly Father, thank You for being the light. You are here whenever I call on You, whether in desperation or thanksgiving. Give me the desire to share Your love to the world.

In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Genre: Non-fiction

Copyright 2021: Light in the Lord: Evelyn Mason Wells: All Rights Reserved