2016—The Year of Light and Order
My time away from the blog to seek God was wonderful, but it was quickly followed by massive “spring” cleaning in January, followed by a hysterectomy, followed by a season of forced relaxation and recuperation. It’s good to get back to writing!
In the next few blogs, I will be sharing some things that have come alive to me so far this year in my personal Bible reading. Later on, I plan to continue the series in 1 Peter. But first, I want to share something that God showed me in prayer just before Christmas. I believe it is a directive for the year ahead of us—2016.
As I was praying with a small group of women three days before Christmas, I saw a darkened living room in the middle of the night, illumined only by a dying fire. I saw a wrapped present descend, gently landing at the base of an unlit Christmas tree. And I sensed God saying to my heart, “I am distributing gifts of order to my people throughout the Church. It is theirs to unwrap, open and receive—if they are willing.”
I knew that order would be custom-made, individually-crafted for each one of us, His children. And I also knew that each one of us was in desperate need for His order to arrive afresh in our lives. I called 2016 the Year of Order.
As Christmas week rolled on, my pastor prepped the church for the year to come. One thing that stood out to me was his declaration that 2016 would be a Year of Light. I grasped that and mulled it over in prayer as the New Year dawned.
2016, a year birthed in an era of chaos and darkness, was to be filled with Light. And Order.
How does order come if there is no light? Well, turn out your lights and try to clean your house. It doesn’t work so well, does it?
If we want to navigate effectively in a fallen world, we must embrace the Light of the gospel. The Light of the Word. The Light Himself, Jesus. We must be willing to let His light shine into our private lives, our relationships, our time usage, our thoughts, our words, our habits, our health….into everything, whether it’s comfortable to us or not.
And it’s funny what Light does. It shows everything as it is, including the disorder that all too often accompanies our lives. However, I believe that as you spend time basking in the Word and fellowshipping with the Light of the world Himself, you will not only see the disorder for what it is, but you will also receive light on how to bring it all back into order.
And even that which recently has had the power to trip you up and defeat you time and again will be brought into wonderful order by the One whose Light will illumine your life.
This is your year—The Year of Light and Order.
Dorothy