DEVOTIONAL:
Both our lives and the entire environment are filled with opposites. Light… dark. Spring…winter. Warm…cold. This week’s Lenten theme of encouraging us to live as children of light echoes many opposites we experience. Beyond these, we are also reminded that the mere physical ability to see does not necessarily guarantee belief, understanding, compassion or entitlement to the gift of God’s enlightenment.
Scattered throughout the Old and New Testaments, we can find numerous stories and instances of the myriad of ways in which God offers opportunities for individuals and groups to “see” and experience light. Although the exact phrase “children of light” occurs only four times in the New Testament (Luke 16:8, John 12:36, Ephesians 5:8 and 1 Thessalonians 5:5), it stands as the focus for the fourth week of Lent and informs all of the readings.
It seems to me that being enlightened means being one’s best self, being fully human. To fully live as children of light presupposes the need to acknowledge the reality that we are not the source of the light, but rather are dependent on our loving God as the ultimate source of light for our lives. In the person of Jesus we have the embodiment of one who lives fully in the light, standing as a model of the fullness of humanity.
PRAYER:
God, our light and salvation, we are grateful for the gift of your Son, Jesus. Companion us this week as we continue the Lenten journey with Jesus toward Resurrection light.