“You shall make seven lamps for it. And the lamps shall be set up so as to give light on the space in front of it.” 

Exodus 25:37

I’m at the age now where my eyes are struggling more in the dark. I hate to admit this. I use the flashlight on my phone when I have to get up in the middle of the night—another reality of getting older that is not my favorite.

One of the next projects on my to-do list is installing the outdoor lights in the front of my house. We’ve had the boxes in the garage for far too long—they are just waiting for me to make time and do the work. Lighting our walkway is a matter of hospitality. It lights the way and invites people to your door, into your life. 

We’ve had some fits with our automatic timer for the lights at church. It had a broken part that prevented it from working. Thanks to some determined folks, the timer works and the outdoor lights by the building are working again. Walking out of a late night meeting and being greeted by darkness was always a little disconcerting. Now, thanks to a working timer, those who leave after sunset are greeted by the embrace of lights under the covered drop off. It truly makes things better. 

Light makes things better. It helps you to see. It wraps you in warmth. A single light in a dark room leads the way. It allows you to navigate and avoid pitfalls and obstacles. It also exposes things. It reveals what you couldn’t see without it. 

We just rearranged some things in our garage (again, making those outdoor lights stare at me a little more menacingly). I needed a new trash bag and, in the dark I couldn’t find their new location. I looked and looked. With a frustration sigh I went to turn on the light. Such a big nuisance—taking three steps to flip the switch (insert my own eye roll here). I was annoyed that I couldn’t grab it quickly. But, with the light on, the roll of trash bags was revealed. It was right in front of my eyes. I just couldn’t see it. I couldn’t see it in the dark. I needed the light.

Today’s verse is from Exodus. But, without the address attached to it you might think it is from the book of Revelation. This portion of Exodus is where God is instructing Moses about how everything is to be constructed and made for the Tabernacle. This is the moving tent that is where the presence of God dwells while Israel wanders in the wilderness. It is the precursor to the Temple. 

The lamps and their lamp-stand stood in the Holy Place—that is the chamber that is just outside the Holy of Holies where the Ark of the Covenant was to be kept. There were two other pieces of furniture in the Holy Place: the table with the showbread and an altar with incense. This place at this time was the where the presence of God dwelt. The Ark was considered the footstool of God—if His throne was in heaven, it was here in the Holy of Holies that the Lord’s feet touched earth. Throughout time, this space was taken incredibly seriously. This was the place where the Lord of heaven and earth was present. 

In other words, these lamps and the stands they sat upon were not something picked up at the thrift store. They were not from Ikea either. Thought, effort, craftsmanship, and extraordinary expense went into these lamps. Why? Because they were the source of seeing the presence of God. 

Here’s the power and the beauty for you today. You are the lamp. You are the light. You reflect the light given to you by Jesus and you are called to shine so other people can see. You are called to be the one who helps people in the middle of the night. You are the one who helps other navigate through the minefield of this world. You are the one that shines so others can make their way into the house. You are the light that illuminates the darkness so people can find their way. This is what Jesus means when he looks upon you and says—you are the light of the world!

Be His light. Shine it for others. Shine it for yourself. Let the Spirit of the Lord illuminate your steps. Reveal His presence and His glory. I mean, that’s the beauty of the Temple. It has incredible history and every inch of it is planned and purposeful. And, because of Jesus, the presence of the Lord is no longer confined to a small room. His footstool is your heart now. He lives in you. He shines through you. He scatters the darkness through you. You, like those lamps, have been knitted together with thought, effort, craftsmanship, and extraordinary expense—you are priceless. And, you have a job to do. Shine light. Reflect His glory. Help others to see the Lord. 

My final thought is this. Occasionally the power goes out at my house. I know where the flashlights are and I can (clumsily) make my way to them in the dark. But, 9 times out of 10, the batteries are dead. I can rarely find batteries in the dark. I don’t have any data or evidence beyond circumstantial. But, it seems like batteries die pretty fast in flashlights when they just sit there in a drawer. A flashlight is meant to shine light. When it doesn’t, especially for a long time, it corrodes. Are you the same way? Keep your batteries recharged. And, the only way to keep shining is being connected to the source. Plug in to Jesus. And then go shine His light. The world needs it! And so do you!

Is your battery charged and ready to shine? If yes, how? If not, how will you plug into  Jesus this week?