We’ll Leave the Light on for You!

Fresh Manna
by Pastor Tim Burt

When a husband and wife enter into marriage, they become as the bible says, “one flesh.” The Bible says in Ephes. 5:21 that they are to “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” The best way to understand this is by understanding that these two people each had their own life living independently of each other. That means they each had their own way of living out their life each day, down to the smallest details such as how you fold and re-hang a towel after you take a shower to whether you fold it at all or just throw it on the floor. These two people have to learn to adapt to each other and develop a plan of how they are going to live out those details in their life, big or small. They need to adapt to each other out of great love for God and for each other. As Romans 12:10 says it, “Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other.”

Renee and I had to do that and found out it takes work. We also found out why we needed to do it with reverence for Christ. It was like we had to allow Him to be the mediator of our heart and keep us in check when either of us was feeling stubborn about change. There are still little things that crop up that Renee asks me to adapt to such as loading the dishwasher the right way so everything gets clean. I still have to remind her to turn the lights off when she leaves a room. That’s okay. No big deal. We love each other and continue to adapt out of love for each other and for God.

There is one light that we have tried to encourage each other to turn on and leave on each day as we leave the house. That is the light of Jesus in our heart. Every time I think of how thankful I am to God for revealing Himself to me so that I could be saved from my sins and have eternal life, I think of the person that shared Jesus’ love with me. She had her light on. I recognized something different about her and asked her why she was different. It was because Jesus was her Savior and she lived her life for Him. It was a light. She stood out in the most wonderful, pure-hearted way.

Sometimes people hurt us in life and we are tempted to get revenge or say something hurtful back. Everyone faces this at some time. At the very least we want to turn the light of Jesus off toward them. We don’t want anything to do with them and we might be able to justify our thinking and reasoning for this. I think back to the father of the prodigal son Jesus talks about. He never turned the light off. His son burned him. He took his inheritance, abandoned his father and took off and squandered it. His father had every reason to turn off the light and forget about his son. He still had one faithful and true son at home. But he didn’t turn the light off. His son finally came around and came home and the father received him with great joy.

It’s often hard to forgive someone that has hurt you. It’s hard to keep the light on, but unless that person has actually abused you and is still in that mode, it’s good to leave the light on. Renee and I have had people get mad at us for reasons that had more to do with frustrations within their own life but were looking for a place to blame. That hurts when that happens. But, we have seen so many people that made wrong and hurtful choices come back to their senses because we did not take offense, walked in love, burned no bridges and tried to be a light. The light attracts a desire for forgiveness, reconciliation, and restoration. So, as Tom Bodett from Motel 6 would say, “We’ll leave the light on for you.”

Matthew 5:14-15 “You are the light of the world—like a city on a mountain, glowing in the night for all to see. Don’t hide your light under a basket! Instead, put it on a stand and let it shine for all.”

In His Love,
Pastor Tim Burt