in Him there is no darkness at all. 1 John 1:5

For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light… Ephesians 5:8

Light is a curious thing. Here are some really cool facts:

1. It’s the fastest thing in our known universe.

2. It travels in a straight path.

3. It does not bend.

4. It is visible and invisible, due to our eye limitations.

5. When it hits something it does one of three things:

Bounces off,

gets soaked up,

or passes through.

6. It can only be seen when it hits something, thus why empty space is dark.

Think about God describing Himself as Light…

1. He is the fastest! No one else is omni-present! Now that’s fast!

2 and 3. God is God. There is no change in Him, EVER. He was, is and always will be exactly Who He is today. He does not bend, He is straight in character.

4, He is visible and invisible. (Romans 1:20) He shows Himself to us in many ways: Through creation, through His work in our lives, through others, through His Word. Yet, He remains invisible.

5. When God “hits” someone, they will do one of three things with Him. People will hear about God and His love and it just bounces right off of them. Or they hear and soak it all in, a changed life is the result. Or, upon hearing about God’s love it passes through them; it may affect them for the moment, but it doesn’t really stick.

6. There is NO EMPTINESS IN GOD. Nothing lacking, nothing needy, no void, because God “hits” everything! This resonates with me most because this is a real struggle for many, just feeling empty at times. When God hits us, and He does regularly, daily, we cannot possibly be truly empty.

First – He is light and in Him is no darkness, no emptiness. (1 John 1:5)

Second – His Spirit lives within us, so there can be no emptiness, no darkness. (2 Cor. 1:22) Finally – He has promised to be with us ALWAYS! (Hebrews 13:5b)

So, when the empty moments come, they are a lie from the father of lies!

Call it what it is and claim the truth!

Light is a curious thing, PRAISE GOD that HE IS LIGHT!

And no darkness, whether physical, mental, spiritual or emotional can stand once He is present!

Are you familiar with the story of the Prodigal Son? It’s found in Luke 15 if you’d like to read the whole story, but the gist is this: A man had two sons. The younger son asks his father for his inheritance (which actually means that he counted his father ‘dead’) and the father gives it to him. This son then goes out and foolishly spends his entire fortune leaving him eating with swine. Completely devastated, the younger son decides to return home to offer himself as a servant to the father. While the son is still far off, the father sees him coming, runs to the son, embraces him and welcomes him back home.

It’s all in your position…

In the story, the son had two positions. At first he was running away, back turned to the father. By the end of the narrative, the son was moving toward the father, back turned to the world.

In the story, the father had ONE position. Always toward his son. The Bible says, “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.”

It’s all in your position…

“You are the God Who sees me” (Genesis 16:13)

Jesus came to seek… (Luke 19:10)

… He first loved us (1 John 4:19)

The Father (God) only has ONE position, ALWAYS towards His children.

What about us? What is your position right now?

Are you facing God, watching Him run to you?

OR Are you running from God?

Here’s the thing… GOD IS ALWAYS RUNNING TO YOU!

It’s all in your position!

It’s February, the month of the “heart!”, when we celebrate Valentine’s Day.

In my heart there rings a melody

There rings a melody with heaven’s harmony;

In my heart there rings a melody

There rings a melody of love!

What is “ringing” in your heart?

Need a new song? How about this one:

My heart, O God, is steadfast;

I will sing and make music with all my soul.

Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn.

I will praise You, Lord, among the nations;

I will sing of You among the peoples.

For great is Your love, higher than the heavens;

Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;

Let Your glory be over all the earth!

Psalm 108

Make Jesus your valentine!

And may your heart ring with a heavenly melody!

At the beginning of each year we look back at the previous year and decide that we are going to make changes in our lives.

Exercising more, losing weight, saving money, spending more time in God’s Word. There are loads of things that we might add to that list with all good intentions to succeed.

Statistics show that, around 30% of Americans make New Year’s resolutions, but less than 10% successfully keep them, with around 23% giving up within the first week and 43% by the end of January. Not a great success rate!

One of my favorite verses in the Bible is found in the little book of Micah. At the end of the verse are 3 requirements from God for our lives that would make good resolutions for 2025.

Micah 6:8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

What an incredible world we would have if we all adopted those resolutions.

Act justly

Love mercy

Walking humbly with our God.

Is it hard for you to make a decision?

Some are easier than others, some are downright life changing!

Here are 8 quick questions to ask yourself when making the tough, or not so tough choices in your life:

1. Will this cause you to sin (to walk WITHOUT God at this moment)?  James 4:17

2. Will this cause someone else to sin?  Romans 14:13, 19

3. Will this control your life?   1 Corinthians 6:12

4. Will it reflect a selfish attitude?  1 Corinthians 10:24

5. Will it reflect an attitude of love?  Romans 13:8

6. Will it make you a testimony to others?  1 Corinthians 9:19

7. Will it bring peace?  Colossians 3:15

8. Will it bring glory to God?  1 Corinthians 10:31

The choice is yours!

(From sermon notes: Pastor Hershberger, Fellowship Bible Church)