Imitators of Christ

(our theme for October)

I John 1:5-7 (NRSV)

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 

What does it mean to walk in the light of God?  Recently I had an experience that helped to again answer that question.  It is a situation most of us have experienced.  I was staying in a large city and when my wife and I were ready to leave the hotel I put our destination into my phone.  Instead of being directed the way I thought we should go I was told to go a different way because of the traffic.  Heeding the directions we left.  Soon after several turns I was totally lost.  My wife begin to ask?  It this the right way?  My only answer was, “We have to trust the directions being given.”  Just when I had become certain that the GPS was wrong and I was planning to turn around we were instructed to make another turn and like magic the on ramp to the freeway appeared in front of us.  We had never been lost, but we had to trust to find our way.

Currently our lives have been turned upside down with a cancer diagnosis for my wife.  All the plans we had made for the future have been canceled.  What the next months will bring us, neither of us knows.  It would be easy to feel lost.  But as challenging as it might seem, we are not in the dark.  We are walking in the light of God.  We know God is with us through the love and support of family and friends.  This fellowship is truly lighting our path.  

We would like to know the exact path our lives are going to take but we are not given that assurance.  I am learning to trust that each day God gives me the love, the support and the directions I need. I am learning to trust that voice and when I feel like I might be lost I remember my recent experience in the city and tell myself, “You have to trust the directions God is given us and it will be okay.”

All of us will have times when we feel lost.  Life events will upset our plans.  But we have this promise:  God is light and when we stay close to God through prayer and Bible study we are walking in the light.  We might not know the destination but we trust that God is with us.  And when things begin to feel really dark and scary, God will send others into this moment to help you again see the light.  For that Christian fellowship we should always give thanks. 

Loving God,  help us to trust you when things are scary.  You are the light in our lives and the light of our path.  Thank you also for how you send others to bring light and joy into our lives when we need it most.  Amen.

This devotional was written by Bill Green and read by Jim Stovall.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.