When 4:00 a.m. rolls around, it is “go time!” Those wee hours of the morning, when the waning moments of darkness before the sun peeks through the gloom and lights up another day, is the time of day that I love best. I am not sure if the old saying “Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise” is true; but I know, “Early to bed, early to rise, gets me to the coffee pot before anyone else in the house,” is definitely true. So, I can live with that.
These somewhat early hours that I keep are comfortable enough in my own home, but when traveling or staying in a friend’s home as a guest, it proves to be a little trickier. In my home, I know which doors creak and which lights will slip into the rooms of my slumbering family. I know how to quietly obtain my coffee and disappear into the quiet of my garden to begin my day. When staying in another person’s home, I am not so sure of myself.
In an unfamiliar setting and out of courtesy to those hosting me, I try to ensure that my early morning habits do not rouse the hosts or any of the other guests. To that end, I try to be mindful of walking on wooden floors stealthily, opening and closing doors quietly, and taking great care with how much light that I use. Oddly enough, it is that last “precaution” of using as little light as possible that ends up undoing all of my good intentions.
On one such occasion when I was staying with friends for a week, I had become fairly familiar with the layout of the house by the morning of the third day. I got myself ready at my usual 4:00 am “go time” and headed to the kitchen, confident of preparing a piping hot pot of creative juice (a.k.a. coffee) for the day. I used my cell phone light to illuminate the floor just enough to see where I was going. I did not want to awaken my hosts or disturb the other guests with the bright kitchen lights. I fumbled around the kitchen and stumbled over my own feet. It was just so dark in that kitchen, but I did not want to use the lights. I banged my head on the cabinet door. I accidentally slammed the trash can lid. About the time that I dropped the lid to the coffee pot, I knew that I needed more light than I was currently using. I had so many overhead lights available, but I was relying on my own little cell phone light instead of using all of the light in the kitchen that had been provided to me by the hosts.
As the coffee pot lid clattered to the floor of the darkened kitchen, I was humbled at the thought of how many times we as Christians do the same thing. Instead of using all the Light provided to us in the Word of God, we rely on creating our own little light to walk in each day. In Psalm 119:105, we are reminded, Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. God has given us a Light to use in His Word that will illuminate our paths, so we do not have to stumble into the temptations of this world. He offers us His Light so we do not have to bang our heads in frustration of why we cannot make things work out at our job. He offers us His Light so we do not accidentally slam the door in the face of those in need of the witness of our testimony. He offers us His Light so we do not drop our standards and let the Bible principles that we have been taught clatter to the floor while living in this dark world. We need more Light in our lives, not less Light.
Too often, out of the fear of disturbing others, we do not utilize all the Light that we have at our disposal. We do not want to make others uncomfortable by shining the light of our witness into a desperately dark world. God gave us His Light so that we can walk in It daily! The Bible tells us in I John 1:7, But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. When we do not use the Light that He has given to us, we shortchange ourselves, and we rob this world of the witness of our daily walk. Those living in darkness need to know that there is Light available to them, and we must walk in that Light in order for the lost to be able to see that for themselves.
As you pour your cup of coffee while standing under your kitchen lights today, whether it is at 4:00 a.m. or at 8:00 p.m. (hey, I am not judging), keep in mind the Light available to you each day. Are you using all the Light that He offers, or are you trying to manufacture your own light? Will you stumble around needlessly in the dark? Will you deprive others of the witness of your walk? Will you use all the Light that He offers, or will you shortchange yourself and those around you? Let us all determine to use more of the Light that He makes available to us each and every day!
by Beth Payton
Hi Beth…Thanks for your devotion on using all the light
we have available! Very encouraging!!🤗🤗💕💕