Helpful. Beautiful. Dangerous.

Okay. So it is a bit on the cheesy side (did he just say 'cheesy'?), and you've heard things like it before (sure, but cheese....?), but I want to press the illustration almost to absurdity. Just to make a point. I know, it's still cheese, but even cheese has a point – especially if it's cut in a wedge.

We celebrated the Feast of Epiphany a few weeks ago. Sometimes there is a “festival of lights” at the Feast that reminds us that Christ is the light of the world. Not just the light, life and savior of the Jews, but of the Gentiles too. The visitation of the magi, who studied the stars, coming to worship the One born King of the Jews is the familiar passage for the service.

We gave out candles prior to the end of the evening's service, lit them, received a blessing, sang a song about the light of the world, and then carried our candles out into the darkness. The candles were lit from the Christ candle. I reminded the small gathering of folks that though Christ is the true Light of the World, he told us that we, too, were the light of the world. Much like the moon reflects the true light of the sun, so we are to reflect or make manifest the light of Christ to everyone we meet. We are to carry Him before the nations, before all people. We aren't to hide our light, but shine it forth, hold it up, shatter the darkness with what we have received from God in Christ.

So I suggested, rather jokingly (obviously), that perhaps folks should see how long they could go about life keeping their candles lit, perhaps trying to drive home with it lit. Ridiculous, I know. But consider how helpful light can be. How beautiful light can be. And if the light is coming from a fire, how dangerous light can be. I think the Gospel is rather like that. Helpful. Beautiful. Dangerous.

Driving home with a lit candle is challenging. You might get hurt. Those around you might get hurt. You might (conceivably) blow something up. Isn't it similar with the Gospel? If we don't handle it well, we or others might get hurt. Severe misuses of the Gospel have been known to explode families, friendships, work relationships, small communities. Even proper handling of the Gospel often unsettles those with power and control and strong appetites. The Gospel has been known to burn down kingdoms and empires without sword, without violence, without threat or coercion.

But imagine carrying a lit candle with you into every activity and place and relationship in your daily living.... Aren't we supposed to carry Christ everywhere we go? He is to be so much the warp and woof of who we are and how we live that we smell like him, remind people of him, relate to others the way he might have related, and sometimes stick out in an odd way like a lit candle at a board meeting in the middle of the day.

So with all the talk out there about mindfulness, I wonder if I tried carrying a lit candle around for four hours one day, all the while associating it with carrying the light of Christ with me and in me, what might change? Would that simple act of mindfulness change anything in my actions, my leisure, my relationships, my thinking and speaking? I wonder....

Perhaps I'll give it a try.... Hopefully I won't burn anything down.