"Let Your Light Shine!"

“Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” 

Matthew 5:16

As many of you know, one of our HOPE family has been in the hospital for a week waiting for heart surgery.  I sat in the ER waiting room last Tuesday afternoon with he and his family waiting to learn what the next step was in the process of replacing a valve in his heart.  This saga had started on Friday night, with all day Saturday testing, only to find out he had a bad heart valve that needed replacing.

Fast forward eight days later, it is now surgery day!  

What? you may say!  Eight days (really 11 days) in the hospital waiting for heart surgery, why so long?  Well, that is a good question.  His family and I have looked at each other over these eight days and wondered the same thing.  As far as the hospital was concerned, “This is when the doctor can schedule it.”  But after spending some time with him this morning, before they came to take him down to the O.R., I came to a different conclusion.  It really all stems from the verse above.

I told him right before they took him down that I know why he spent a week plus in that room.  It was for relationships.  He was there for the interactions between him and the nurses, nurse assistant, even workers in the hospital.  I witnessed nurse after nurse and assistants come in his room this morning telling him how much they had enjoy being his nurse and that they were praying for him.  One nurse in particular said, “This will forever be your room in my mind.  There are certain rooms here that I name by patients by the impact they left on me.  This room has never been named before, but now it has a name.”  She went on to say, “I prayed for you last night before I went to bed.”  Folks, that is impact.

God knows what He is doing.  These nurses and hospital workers needed a dose of Mr. Bruce Mack and they got it.  And listen, not for his glory, but for God’s glory.  It was truly amazing to see them come in and hug their patient good bye, praying for success in surgery.

God gives all of us who believe an opportunity to let our light shine before men and women, that they may see the Christ in us and that we are about glorifying our Father who is in heaven.  Those opportunities happen all the time.  The question is, do we see them and if so, do we do anything about it?

Let me give you a couple of examples from my own life.  A while back we were in a local restaurant eating and 7 of our 9 kids were with us.  We hold hands around the table when we pray and that does not change even when we are out eating.  So we held hands and one of the kids prayed.  We continued to talk and eat when this couple came up and said, “We just wanted to tell you how your family has impacted us today.  You holding hands and praying, seeing you interact with one another has been amazing.  Your kids are so well behaved.”  I thanked them and thought, yes we are blessed, but thankful we could glorify HIM in some way by our actions.

Another happened last week.  Terry, Emma, and I took Mary (our 15 year old daughter) to work at Chick-fil-a.  As we parked and got out of the truck, I met Mary at the back of the truck, hugged her, gave her a kiss on the cheek and told her I love her.  As she was walking away, I said, you act the way you know you should today.  Kind of normal stuff for me.  But as we were walking into the restaurant a women in the drive through stopped us and said out her window, “I told your daughter she should be thankful she had a dad like you who shows how much he loves you in public.”  May HE be glorified by my actions. 

Folks, it is so important to let your light shine.  No, not that you may be lifted up, but HE may be glorified.  God wants others to be able to see HIM in you, in your actions, in your works, and in your speech.  Stop a minute and think, how has my light been shining this week?  Has anyone been able to see the Christ that lives in me?  If your answer is No then look to make a change!  If the answer is Yes then stop and give God the praise for presenting those opportunities to glorify HIM.

I was blessed today to see that at work in Bruce Mack.  Of course he is only one example.  I see God at work in and through many of my friends, family, and my wonderful church families.  God is truly good.  Let us all let the light of Christ shine through us.  Amen!

Blessings, 

Pastor Marty Duffell

Pastor - HOPE EPC Raleigh

Worship - Grow - Serve