BY TINA L. SCOTT
EDITOR
One of my favorite things to do during the holidays is to sit in the dark looking at the lights on the Christmas tree. Whether early in the morning before anyone else is up, with a cup of hot coffee in hand, or late at night with family, it’s a wonderful reminder that this is what the season is all about. It is in the quiet, still moments that we can hear the most important and profound things.
I think, even if I didn’t have the time or money to put any other decorations on the tree or in my home, much as I love decorating for Christmas, perhaps just having lights on an evergreen tree in my living room would be enough.
It’s not so much that the lights are decoration as much as I love how beautiful they are, glowing softly and inspiring a feeling of childhood wonder. And for me, they remind me that the season of Christmas is all about the light–the light of the world that came to earth on that first Christmas night some 2,000 years ago, when a baby was born in a manger in a stable.
“There came a glorious light” Christmas songs retell–and they are speaking of the star over Bethlehem in the singing. But even more so, they are singing of the Christ child because He was the true light that came to us that night.
All these years later, for many of us, His light is still what leads us and what we are drawn to. The lights I stare at on my Christmas tree in quiet moments of reflection refocus me, give me hope, and turn my heart toward matters of the soul. They remind me that we too are called to be the light of the world.
What are we doing to be that light, to shine a light into the darker corners of this world, to be a glimmer of hope in darkness?
As I write this, the lyrics of another song run through my mind. The song, Go Light Your World, is written by Chris Rice. If you have a few minutes this Christmas season, turn on the Christmas lights on your tree, sit a spell, and give it a listen. youtube.com/watch?v=dYskFmomonY