Full Moon
Full Moon
There’s going to be a full moon tonight in a soft, clear, Southern California sky. And I’m going to be outside enjoying it.
Does that make me sound like a romantic? Well, maybe. But I just love the silvery sheen of a bright, moonlit night. The shadows are long, and common shapes and figures take on an almost magical quality. Maybe Ken and I will go for a walk in the moonlit neighborhood.
That’s what our family used to do back on the farm in Maryland. Sometimes we would even saddle up our horses and go for a moonlight ride. What fun! Laughter in the night. The clip-clop of horse hooves. Pale light turning the gravel road into a silver ribbon. Funny, romantic songs about the moon.
To me as a child, it was all so wonderful.
On one of those moonlight rides, I remember my father telling us about the relationship between the moon and the sun. He explained how the sun—in all its glory and greatness—was the source of our world’s light. And though the sun was on the other side of the earth and out of sight, the moon, devoid of any brightness of its own, reflected the light of the sun. Like a mirror, the moon was in the right place at the right time—the best position to reflect the brightness of the sun.
Daddy went on to tell us that we as Christians relate to our Lord much like the moon relates to the sun. If we’re lined up in His will, we are in the best position to reflect the glory of the Son, Jesus Christ. For that matter, like the moon, we can only reflect His light. We have no real goodness, no real virtue, apart from our Lord. He is the Source of it all and the best we can do is get in a right relationship to Him so that we can be His light here on earth.
In John 9:5 Jesus said, “While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” And then He reminds us in Matthew 5 that we are the light of the world. “Let your light shine before men,” He tells us, “that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (vv. 14,16).
So, if you happen to step outside tonight on this full moonlit evening, let that shining orb call you back to your purpose on this old planet. Get in the right position. Get in right relationship with God. Reflect the light and love of the Sun of Righteousness (Malachi 4:2).