Shine Where the Lord Places You!

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I am in a big city for a scientific conference – and it is a beautiful city. I am staying in walking distance to the convention center – walking across the beautiful bridges – it is truly amazing how MANY bridges there are! The city shines with light and is a blend of old and new. I know that I have very little time here – but will max out my moments.

With the meeting, I am learning about new-to-me skills and science instrumentation – enjoying sharing and networking – as well as innovations and modernizations. I am appreciative of learning science – and of teaching science – but mostly I think that I am blessed to have a brain and to WANT to use it.

And that is where we have to realize that we are to SHINE where the Lord places us – we have to carry our JOY with us – and tap into it and to tap into the LORD wherever we are – God is EVERYWHERE – so we can go ANYWHERE – and we can especially remember that people are people everywhere – it is not for us to be “what about me” all the time – it is a chance for us to say, “Lord – where do the people need to see YOUR SHINE?”

Well, I’m not here to take over the world – but to BRIDGE to my future – to walk WITH the Lord – and to have PERSERVERENCE in living – and to have STEEL in my bones to stand up strong – and stretch myself.

Of course – thanks to the LORD for His Scriptures which remind us to SHINE wherever we are.

Job 41:32 – “He maketh a path to shine after him; one would think the deep to be hoary.”

Psalms 80:19 – “Turn us again, O LORD God of hosts, cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.”

Job 37:15 – “Dost thou know when God disposed them, and caused the light of his cloud to shine?”

Psalms 80:3 – “Turn us again, O God, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.”

Numbers 6:25 – “The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:”

Psalms 80:7 – “Turn us again, O God of hosts, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.”

Isaiah 60:1 – “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.”

Job 36:32 – “With clouds he covereth the light; and commandeth it not to shine by the cloud that cometh betwixt.”

Psalms 31:16 – “Make thy face to shine upon thy servant: save me for thy mercies’ sake.”

Psalms 119:135 – “Make thy face to shine upon thy servant; and teach me thy statutes.”

Psalms 67:1 – “(To the chief Musician on Neginoth, A Psalm or Song.) God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah.”

Job 3:4 – “Let that day be darkness; let not God regard it from above, neither let the light shine upon it.”

Job 41:18 – “By his neesings a light doth shine, and his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning.”


Matthew 5:16 – “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

Job 22:28 – “Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways.”

Job 18:5 – “Yea, the light of the wicked shall be put out, and the spark of his fire shall not shine.”

Matthew 13:43 – “Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.”

Job 11:17 – “And thine age shall be clearer than the noonday; thou shalt shine forth, thou shalt be as the morning.”

Philippians 2:15 – “That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;”

Psalms 104:15 – “And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man’s heart.”

Revelation 21:23 – “And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.”

Psalms 80:1 – “(To the chief Musician upon Shoshannimeduth, A Psalm of Asaph.) Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth.”


Daniel 9:17 – “Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of thy servant, and his supplications, and cause thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord’s sake.”


2 Corinthians 4:6 –  “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”


Job 10:3 – “Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest oppress, that thou shouldest despise the work of thine hands, and shine upon the counsel of the wicked?”


2 Corinthians 4:4 – “In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.”


Matthew 17:2 – “And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.”


Daniel 12:3 – “And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.”


Isaiah 13:10 – “For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine.”


Ecclesiastes 8:1 – “Who is as the wise man? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? a man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the boldness of his face shall be changed.”

Lord “Shine on Us” – May the Fourth

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“May the Fourth be with you” a great fun saying for today, rhyming with the “Star Wars” movie’s “May the Force be with you.” And yet WOW, we have to avow an even unequaled great greater GREATEST Force of the great greater greatest power, of the greatest LOVE, of the greatest LIGHT, OF OUR GREAT GOD!!!

Yesterday, May the 3rd, with no catchy phrase, added to my witness of our unequaled greatest never-changing God. Wow I’m tired but a happy heart-filled tired.  I was BUSY yesterday with helping a friend with her garage sale, then all day outside running a 50:50 raffle for the benefit of the local mansion upkeep – painting especially – I walked the grounds with a paint can and tickets. Then a quick shower at home (80 plus degrees all day, I took often respites in the shade of the great stone-covered building) and after that, whew, jumping on the road for an hour drive to an evening church service, was great praising the Lord – and after it I dropped off a friend an hour away then chugged home, an hour from there, whew! Midnight… TIRED… My eyes hurt from the headlights… SO GRATEFUL the LORD got me HOME SAFE!!!! Wow I’m tired today but a happy heart-filled tired from needed rest. Wish the cat would have let me sleep, but it’s more important to be up praising the Lord!

Clearly the Lord’s Light was shining on us last night, with friends, completely safe in a big church when a huge line of storms came through. You could see through the windows of the RAGE of weather and see the lightning, but heard NONE of it – yeah heard none! Great wooden church protection and double paned windows. I heard practically none of the fierce storms, felt none, and knew that security feeling. And with the Lord? Oh, He MUST be the most amazing greatest all in all, COVERED and all LIGHT! Security in Him and direction in Him leading us!

Led by the Lord’s Light.

I wondered if we would lose power, but we were holding electric candles, oh yeah, we turned off the lights to see more LIGHT of the LORD. To remove artificial light, artificial distractions, artificial false hope. We found the best HOPE in the Lord. Perhaps that’s the best thought: that in the storms of life, look for the light. In the unknowns, look for the Light of the Lord. Lord, Shine on us.

The song lyrics stood out to me when I saw my photo of a friend’s shared candle – the paper was shining in the background from the pew in front of us – wow: “SHINE on US” – both the lyrics and the physical paper illuminated by the light:

“Lord, let Your lightLight of Your faceShine on us

That we may be savedThat we may have lifeTo find our wayIn the darkest night

Let your light shine on usLord, let your graceGrace from Your handCome over us”

Yes today, May the Fourth, Force, whatever phrases of the day and phase of life you are in, be in the Lord’s Light!!!

Let us shine from Him, His light, His power, His Grace, His Way. Today and tomorrow too with no catchy phrase either… Let us be a witness of our greatest never-changing God. 

We (I especially) need the Lord’s Light today, even in broad daylight. 

Amen


Here are the full lyrics and song link:

Phillips, Craig & Dean – w/ Full Vocal & Lyrics”https://youtu.be/i51ZYgVFCUo?si=aux5IQ304A57d0c1

Lyrics

Lord, let Your light

Light of Your face

Shine on us

Lord, let Your light

Light of Your face

Shine on us

That we may be saved

That we may have life

To find our way

In the darkest night

Let your light shine on us

Lord, let your grace

Grace from Your hand

Come over us

Lord, let your grace

Grace from Your hand

Come over us

That we may be saved

That we may have life

To find our way

In the darkest night

Let Your grace come over us

Lord, let Your love

Love with no end

Come over us

Lord, let Your love

Love with no end

Come over us

That we may be saved

That we may have life

To find our way

In the darkest night

Let Your love come over us

Let Your light shine on us