Over the weekend, I was on a CEW retreat. After the activities for Saturday night had wrapped up, I went back to the conference room to grab my water bottle. The lights in the room were off, the lights in the hallway outside the room were off, and the blinds in the room were closed. So, the room was pitch black. I was wandering around the edge of the room trying to find the light switches and not having success, running into various things. After a few moments, someone else on the retreat, a good friend, came into the room and knowing exactly where the light switches were, turned them on for me. Someone turning on the lights seems like no big deal. This occurrence is seemingly small and ordinary. But as I ponder and reflect on the weekend, I realize that it was a perfect metaphor for what CEW is. I was stumbling in the dark when someone came and turned on the light. When we have darkness in our lives, it is communities like CEW that bring Christ’s light to us. Each and every Christian is called to bring His light to others.
Can you imagine trying to live your faith alone? It would not go too well. We all need support and people to walk with us on our journeys. We need people to shine Christ’s light in our lives. Without faith communities, the darkness of suffering, struggles, weakness, pain would seem impossible to walk through. Even just the ordinary moments of working to grow in faith and deepen our relationship with Jesus would be stagnant and quite difficult.
When you are on a retreat, such as CEW, the light is so bright. The Lord works so powerfully in the people who are a part of the weekend, illuminating the experience in so many ways. And the thing about CEW is that it’s not just an amazing weekend that ends, sending you back into regular life to continue on by yourself. His light continues to shine among the people who are part of the community, helping you to be able to see.
To bring Christ’s light into the world around us is part of the mission. The light cannot stop the moment we leave the weekend. The hope is that it is burning so brightly that we carry it back to our everyday lives, to everyone around us. Over the weekend, I witnessed the Holy Spirit opening hearts and setting them on fire, which are burning brightly with the love and light of Jesus.
Each day, I pray that Jesus would allow me and help me to shine His light. It’s not always easy, but with communities like CEW, it’s possible. Maybe you feel like you are in the dark right now. Get connected to a faith community, reach out to people and ask for prayers and support. Let them turn the light on for you. My prayer for each of us today is that we would seek out people who will provide light in our lives and that we would be Christ’s light to the people around us. It’s what He is telling us to do!
