My Christmas tree has been up for about a week. I was pretty proud of myself, I did all homemade decorations this year, brown paper bag, and felt hearts, applesauce and cinnamon ornaments, newspaper paper chain, and some green and red handprints of my grandchildren. Something happened between the day I finished and now, a strand of lights has a short so sometimes they are on, and sometimes they are off (no, those were not homemade). My husband mentioned that I had a bald spot from the front window, and it is very noticeable from the living room as well. I was pretty bummed, but not enough to take everything off and start over with a new strand.

I got to thinking how we are like those lights. It takes everyone in the strand to light up to make the tree beautiful. With modern technology, the days are over that when one light burnt out the whole strand, but you can still notice that one dark spot on the tree. With a whole strand shorting out, there are huge dark spots. You can’t notice as much with the lights on, but when I shut off the lights and it is dark outside, my favorite time to look at the tree, there they are…

One light not shining is sad, many lights not shining is darkness.

Matthew 5:16 (NIV), “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

Matthew 5:14 (Aramaic Bible in Plain English), “You are the light of the world. You cannot hide a city that has been built upon a mountain.”

Just like each one of those little white sparkling lights on my tree, each one of us is important.

Let your light shine!