A Light In The Darkness


14 "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;
Matt 5:14 (NASB)


Man! Help somebody!! I'm ready to jump off the Holiday train and it just pulled out of the station!!! I tried to sit down and write this out today but there was something happening all day long. We had a long night at work last night after gorging all day onThanksgiving goodies. It seemed as soon as I woke up today there was something going on. Finally, I just got back home from taking my grandson out to eat and have now at 6:45 p.m. just sat down. I'm not feeling real spiritual right now but, you know what? I enjoyed every minute of it and am truly thankful for the GREAT food and the time I got to spend with my loved ones. As I was riding home thinking about what I would write my mind went back a couple of days this week. It was no great spiritual insight or revelation, but about the life of someone that had gotten touched this week from a message that had been sent out that very same week. A little background please Maestro. O.K.

This past week I noticed many different posts on Facebook by different ministries.They were all touting the many different ways that God had blessed their ministries; and, also how they were reaching out to the community with the resources that God had so richly blessed them with. Now, I was thinking about how successful those ministries and how much they were in the public eye when my son called me. In the course of our conversation he told me that a close friend of his had written him and proceeded to summarize the letter to me. After he had finished he told me what inspired this message tonight. His friend writes a bi weekly sermon and sends it out via the internet. One of those messages had touched my son's girlfriend and she had begun reading the internet sermons. The message had moved on the both of them enough to make them want to go to church and so they did.O.K. Ronnie. So what!? It happens all the time. 24/7/365. Yes I understand that but hear me out. It was not the fact that a message had been sent and received but it was where the message originated from. You see, in all those great ministries that I read about this week I nowhere read that a life had been touched. Yes, those various ministries absolutely DO touch people's lives, but for me, this week it was this one letter that I heard about. Now for my point. This letter and all the aforementioned bi weekly sermons came from the pen of an inmate in the darkness and hell hole of a prison cell in Jackson, Ga.

There were no television cameras or radio stations attending to this letter. No fancy computers to assist the writer in his labors. No, it was written by a man with a pencil and paper in longhand then hand delivered to another person for transcribing on to a computer and sent out over the internet. No facebook or twitter posts to inform the public. Just a simple hand written letter from the inside of a prison cell. But, it TOUCHED a life. It made a difference at a point in time in the life of another human being. And THAT dear reader IS my point. Look at that verse again:

14 "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;
Matt 5:14 (NASB)

Brothers and sisters it matters not your circumstances or station in life. You may not think that you are doing anything of substance but think again. There is nothing glorious in going to work day after day,year after year to give your children or loved ones a decent life. No, no.. you aren't going to make any headlines teaching a Sunday School class or keeping a nursery. The networks probably aren't going to beat a path to your door for caring for that loved one or giving to that charity. But, I can assure you that God is taking note and so is someone in this world. You are a light dear Christian, a city set on a hill.

No, that letter and those bi weekly sermons won't make Fox News or TBN or even Facebook. Likewise for the unseen toil that YOU are and have been bearing. But, trust me God is taking note and writing a Book Of Remembrance about it. Oh yeah, YES HE IS!

14 "You have said, 'It is vain to serve God; and what profit is it that we have kept His charge, and that we have walked in mourning before the Lord of hosts?
15 ~'So now we call the arrogant blessed; not only are the doers of wickedness built up but they also test God and escape.'"

The Book of Remembrance

16 Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord gave attention and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear the Lord and who esteem His name.

Mal 3:14-16 (NASB)


Brothers and Sisters, if you are in a prison cell God sees your labor. If you are working hard just to keep food on the table God knows it. He is not going to forget it and you WILL reap your reward.

9 Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.
10 So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.
Gal 6:9-10 (NASB)




God Bless