In the dimly lit restaurant, our waitress quietly took our orders with a solemn expression. But then a customer kindly gave her a writing pen that had a little flashlight built into it. He told her it was so she could “see in the dark.”

Her face lit up and her demeanor changed to reflect joy. It was evident that she as delighted by the gift—clicking the light off and on. When she left our tables, the man smiled as he whispered to me: “I think she brightened up when I gave her the pen. It made her day!”

The God-given gift of light certainly brightens our days. Jesus is the ultimate gift of light—“Light . . . come into the world” to save the world (John 3:16-19). God provided this Gift because He loves us and wants to be in relationship with us. When we receive Christ as our Savior, our sins are forgiven, and we experience fellowship with Him. Jesus brightens our lives for all eternity. 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).

As believers in Jesus, we’re also to be “the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14). When we receive the gift God gave us through Christ, we walk in His light and “shine [our] light before others” (v. 16). As He helps us, let’s shine for Him today!

A German study found that being in a group can influence normally honest people to behave dishonestly. They found this was especially true if money was at stake. In the study, there was a financial gain if people gave dishonest answers, and they found the participants worked together to justify lying. If everyone was doing it, being dishonest seemed more acceptable.

But our morality shouldn’t be based on what everybody else is doing! Morality comes from God’s Word. You see, God is our Creator so only he has the authority to set the rules. Instead of looking to everyone else, we need to go to God’s Word for our morality.

Anne shares about wisdom and trust from Revelation 1:8.

The deepest longings of your heart were never meant to be fulfilled by temporary things.

Success can be a gift from God—but it can also reveal what’s happening in our hearts. Rob West looks at the Old Testament story of King Saul to warn us that God gives talents for His glory and were never meant to become monuments to ourselves.

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