This little light of mine - I'm gonna let it shine.

"You are the salt of the earth ... You are the light of the world ... let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and [see you] praise your Father in heaven." -- Matthew 5:13-16

I'm pretty sure "This little light of mine" was my favorite song to sing as a child. There's something magical about holding up your index finger to pretend it's a flame and trying to keep others from blowing it out. And, I'm pretty sure that all of the kids that I was in choir with ran around the auditorium trying to blow out each other's flames. We would hide underneath the pews, attempt to hide in the baptismal (which was really a mini bath with really warm water in it), and upstairs in the balcony.

It's interesting ... we try to protect our flame, our light, our salvation, from the secular world. And yet, it seems like all we're doing is running around, trying to stay away from the very people who need to see our flame and feel the heat that it gives off. It's hard to submerse yourself in the secular world without giving into all it has to offer. I have been a victim and a culprit of doing so.

And then, this amazing song comes to mind (Shawn McDonald, "Free'):

"I feel like the weight of the world is all - crashing down on me.
And some how I just don’t believe this is how it is suppose to be.
And all this expectation on - the way I’m suppose to live.
Becomes my minds distraction - with nothing left to give.
You said your burden is light and your load - is no more.
You said your ways are right and in you I would soar."

There have been so many instances when I'm at a crossroads, as silly and cliché as it sounds, when I have two choices. I can either choose to go or stay, do or not do, speak or listen, and so many others. If my heart does not reflect my words, and my words do not reflect my heart, then what good is either? If I cannot speak only words of unconditional goodness, kindness, love, encouragement, understanding, then what is the the purpose of speaking? If we cannot shine our light to others, then what is the purpose of having it all? Matthew 5:13-16 describes a lamp being lit and then hiding it underneath a bowl instead of placing it on a table so it can light the entire house. Our faith is to be cherished, but we are also called to share it with everyone.

And now that I think about it, this blog is kind of what I view as sharing my faith with everyone, or anyone who wants to read it. Whenever I shared my testimony in a Phi Lamb chapter meeting, I received a message about how my testimony touched a young lady on a personal level, and she's choosing to learn from the words of my mistakes instead of making them herself. I think it is awesome that because of the mistakes I committed, I can be an example to others.

Life is not perfect; it's not supposed to be perfect. God did not choose just the extraordinary, he chose the ordinary. I recently learned that Noah was a drunkard when the Lord called him to build the ark. Could you imagine? I'm not sure I would have believed a drunkard when he would have told me that a flood is coming, I would have thought it was the wine (or whatever it was) talking. Amazingly, God takes the imperfect and transforms them. I'm pretty sure if my life would have been "perfect", I wouldn't have become closer in my walk with Him. I wouldn't have relied on Him to get me through college, to get me into grad school, and to have me where I am today. It scares me to think what would have happened if I would have disregarded God all of these years. I don't even want to know what kind of a person I would have been if I had not known and trusted and walked with Jesus. And when I feel discouraged, when I feel like I am nothing special to contribute to this world, I think of these lyrics:

Why should I feel discouraged,
Why should the shadows come,
Why should my heart feel lonely
And long for Heaven and home,
When Jesus is my portion?
A constant Friend is He:
His eye is on the sparrow,
And I know He watches over me;
His eye is on the sparrow,
And I know He watches me.

He is always going to be here by our side, just as He promised. We need to keep the same bargain. We can't just tuck him away in a box and go about our sinful ways (believe me, I've tried, it doesn't work). Yes we make mistakes, I have had my fair share from yesterday and today; but the great news is that He is a just and a forgiving God, and when we respectfully, humbly, and unconditionally repent, He will forgive and forget. Now, I'm not saying that we can go about our lives and keep sinning and then ask for forgiveness at the end of the day when it is convenient (believe me, I've tried that too). Like a said, He is a just God. Praise the Lord (literally) He is a just God.

Here is another video by Nate Pfeil that I humbly and sincerely encourage you to watch. It is only twelve minutes long. It is worth every second. And I don't ask you to watch these because I am trying to scare you or trying to put myself up on a pedestal to preach to you about salvation. I need to hear it just as much as you do. It really does solidify what I am trying to say in this post.



I love you all,
Kelsea