Stars in the Night—this includes life-changing material!

Stars in the Night—this includes life-changing material! Matthew 5.14-16

Have you ever lay on your back and looked up at the night sky, particularly when you are out in the woods and away from the city lights? Wow! What a fantastic display of God’s handiwork! Ah come on all you campers and backpackers—it seems like God is almost showing off, doesn’t it? Love the stars! When you live in a big city with many lights, the stars are not quite so visible. And have you ever wondered where the stars go during the day? Nowhere. They are just not visible to us because of sunlight. (Now there’s a whole other reason for our Creator to smile—his creation of the sun--its immensity, enormity and importance.)

When Jesus said, ‘You are the light of the world’ to his disciples, including those of us who follow him today, I believe he wants us to be as visible as the stars in the unadulterated night sky. His next words, ‘A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.’1

I remember hearing a song by Matt Redman, which included the line, ‘We will shine like stars in the universe…’2 Looking up the Scripture that inspired Redman’s song, I found these brilliant words from Paul: “Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky.”3 Another translations says, ‘do everything without grumbling and complaining’….wait, what?!

So picking up on Jesus’ emphatic statement, “You are the Light of the World… let your light shine before others,” Paul says,
‘do not grumble and complain…
then you will be like stars in the night sky.’
That is how distinct you will be from other people—like stars in the night sky. It is estimated that 30 to 40 percent of all conversations contain either complaining or criticism.4

Now not all complaining or criticism is bad, but it should be constructive. Note: A New York Times article commented, ‘we often do not speak frankly to the person doing us wrong. I was in a class where everyone was annoyed at the teacher for regularly failing to show up on time. It was an easily fixable problem, but all of us — about a dozen — complained in whispers to one another for weeks.
A few grumbled to other teachers and even spoke to the head of the entire program. But nothing changed. Finally, one brave soul broached the subject directly with our teacher.
He responded graciously and started showing up promptly.’5

Think of your conversations. Some of us even start conversations with complete strangers by complaining about something we are mutually enduring—like the post office line or DMV6…ugh, why does bureaucracy seem to translate into waiting in line? Wait, I was about to complain!

Don’t you see, Friends? Everybody complains. EXACTLY! So, let’s not be everybody—let’s be different. This is so simple, but so incredible, my dear ones. Don’t be everybody, instead, be the light of the world by speaking words of life or keeping still. “The tongue has the power of life and death,”7
so “let your conversation be always full of grace.”8

Christine

PastorWoman.com

1 – Matthew 5.14-16
2 – Matt Redman: Shine, Youtube: Shine - Live from Passio#8C4B82
3 – Philippians 2.14-15
4 – “I Went 21 Days without Complaining and it Changed My Life,” www.huffingtonpost.com/.../no-complaint-experiment
5 - www.nytimes.com/.../the-satisfaction-and-annoyance
6 – DMV- Department of Motor Vehicles
7 – Proverbs 18.21
8 – Colossians 4.6