by Ross Bentley
“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.””
John 8:12 NIV
I was recently driving through the Nez Perce canyon in Idaho, and the fog broke and a glorious light filled the canyon. It brought a brilliance and vividness to the everything in sight. The road glistened like diamonds from the dew. The golden leaves shimmered as the gentle danced in the breeze as the hung from the enormous birch trunks that stood at the river’s edge. Red fire bushes looked like torches marking the road ahead. The sun was at our backs, brilliantly illuminating the scene before us.
It occurred to me in that moment to turn and look at the sun, but before I turned my head, I was gently reminded that the purpose of the light was not itself, but to illuminate that upon which it shone.
That’s when the verse from John 8 came to my mind: ‘I am the Light of the World.’
And I realized - if I only stare into the light, I will not only go blind, but I will miss the intent of the light, giving brilliance and beauty to all it shines on. Of course Jesus wants us to look at Him intently, but I believe He also wants us to see what He is illuminating, and how in His light He makes things look different than they do in darkness.
If I were to describe that valley in its original obscured view, I would have failed to ascribe much beauty to it at all, because I didn’t really see it. But afterwards, there were not sufficient words to capture the beauty, the glory, the dignity of that scene. The light changed what I saw, and as a result, it changed me.
So I resolve to look for the light, and to notice what it illuminates. And I resolve to see that other that it shines on, that which Jesus desires me to see, as He sees it with me.