Tip of My Iceberg

My dear husband is the master of tchotchkes. Little knick-knack types of things that amuse people for a brief moment, a short-lived trinket.

His forte is finding such objects for our grands.

One of his favorite items are glow sticks, the kind you bend to make them brighten up for a short time. He handed those out to the grands, who made bracelets, necklaces, headpieces, and various other ornamentations to cavort about in the dark.

The kids were dancing around in the dark, making the lights swirl into streams of color. When they stood still, the lights were better defined and recognized for what they were created to be.

Light gives us the means to see what’s happening around us. People who have never seen light, those blind from birth, have to decipher what’s around them with their other senses. They can’t experience color as we do; shades and hues can’t be understood. They can’t imagine the composition of a face or the majesty of mountains or oceans as we can. We who see grasp the significance of light and how it reveals the world around us.

The contrast between light and darkness has been pondered for centuries. Even in movies and paintings, light often represents the good, while darkness represents the bad and fearsome.

Francis Bacon, an English philosopher and essayist, wrote, “In order for the light to shine so brightly, the darkness must be present.” Light can’t be fully appreciated apart from recognizing the existence of darkness. Similarly, Fyodor Dostoevsky, the famous Russian author, said in his book “Crime and Punishment”, “The darker the night, the brighter the stars.” Light reflects the hope we have even when life feels desperate and despairing.

The ancient Greek philosopher, Plato, recognized how we grow in appreciation of light and dark. “We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.” The light often exposes things we don’t want to see or deal with. Once we see things for what they are, we have no excuse to ignore it.

Jesus understood the need for people to see the light clearly; He Himself was called the Light of the World. Darkness was a physical and mental reality for the Jewish nation then–the Romans viewed the Jews with suspicion and often used persecution to deal with them. The claim to be the Light of the world was the hope these people needed.

“Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, ‘I am the Light of the world. If you follow Me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.’” John 8:12.

The religious leaders mocked Jesus for His statements; they didn’t see Him leading any rebellion or taking a military stand. What Jesus provided was the ability to see the truth, expose the lies and darkness that burdened the people, and shine a light on hope for the people.

Where my husband’s trinkets provided light for a small space, glowing to show outlines of what was, Jesus shines the light of His truth and wisdom on all of us, giving us the chance to see things as they should be.

Not a simple glow-in-the-dark stick; rather, a massive high-beam spotlight on all of life, that we may see clearly and choose wisely. Light to see who we are, what we’re doing, where we’re going.

That’s Jesus.

I never want to settle for a dim bulb.