Shine Like Stars

When I was young I learned the song, “This Little Light of Mine.”  Now that I have kids, I’ve been teaching it to them, too.  It’s a good reminder to us to let our lights shine to those around us.

But, do you ever wonder what that means?  How can I let my light shine to my friends, neighbors and even to strangers.  I know there are many excellent suggestions out there, but I stumbled across one this past week as I was reading Philippians.  Ironically, it was in the section that is headed Shining as Stars in my CSSB.  In verse 14 of chapter 2, Paul writes, “Do everything without complaining or arguing…”  In the past, I’ve been so focused on the “shine like stars” part that I miss the command Paul gives. 

Isn’t it easy for us to get wrapped up in the world’s self-pity party?  We want to say, “Feel sorry for me, I’ve got it so bad.”  In reality, though, we always have many, many blessings!  And when we resist the temptation to complain, we can let our light shine to those around us.

As a family, we had the chance to practice recently.  On the way to the beach during spring break, our van broke down necessitating a tow and costly repair.  We could have been upset over the time we lost or the money we had to spend unexpectedly.  Instead, we tried to find the positives.  First, we were at a rest area when our van broke down, so we weren’t in danger from highway traffic.  Second, we got to ride in our van on a flatbed tow truck—every kid’s dream!  Third, we found the small-town gas station with the AWESOME coffee we had thought we had lost.  I could keep going about all the blessings we discovered as we waited for our van to be fixed, but I think you get the idea.  It’s all a matter of perspective.

And that perspective is JESUS.  He lived, suffered and died for us.  How can we do any less than to shine like stars for him?