Listen to Devotion

[Jesus said] “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

Where I live, winter can be a dark time of year. In fact, during several months of the year, the sun goes down well before 5 P.M. During that time of the year, when I come home after an evening class or meeting, it is already quite dark. So dark, in fact, that it can be difficult for me to find the doorknob in the garage door. And if I do find it, the darkness makes it almost impossible for me to line up the key with the lock to enter the house. It is certainly a lot easier if someone else in my family remembers to leave the outside light on. With the light on, it is so much easier to see and to enter.

Life can be like that. It can be very difficult—even impossible—to find our way to God. Each day, we encounter so many different thoughts and ideas and religions. We stumble over the idea that there are many paths to God. We get lost in the darkness of the encouragement to do whatever makes us happy. We can’t find the door because we are often convinced that we are good enough for heaven all on our own, if we just try hard enough.

Jesus shines in the darkness and shows us the way home to heaven. His life, death, and resurrection cut through all the darkness and clearly show us the only way to heaven. Through faith in him, we see clearly and can enter through the door to leave the darkness behind.

With the love of Jesus shining in our hearts, we can now be the light for others. Let it shine! Live your faith. Let your words and actions shine the light on Jesus in this dark world so that others, too, can find the way home to heaven.

Dear Jesus, shine in me that I may show others the way to you. Amen.

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.