If you somehow haven't noticed, the human eye is a miracle of creation.Among other amazing things about the eye is the iris. The iris of the eye was created in a way that it adjusts to the light. Simply put, it opens in dim light to allow more light in, and narrows in bright light to allow less light in.
Many of you, like myself, took sixth grade science, and you are well aware of this and other mysteries of the eye so I won't waste much time explaining what little I know about the way it functions. For this is not at all to be a blog about the anatomy of the human eye.
No, this is an overture to illumination.
One of my favorite movies in the world is entitled Everything Is Illuminated, and I'm not too proud to admit that I have not yet read the book by the same name. However, in the film, the character Alex is writing a book about his adventures, and he titles one of his chapters "An Overture to Illumination." This has always stuck out to me as one of my favorite things about the film. Although small, and somewhat inconsequential, to me that phrase embodies a beautiful idea.
Simply because I want my life to be an overture to illumination.
Think about what that might imply.
"Overture," if being thought of by the definition, "an introduction to something more substantial," then consider the statement, "I want my life to be an introduction to an Illumination far more substantial than my own."
Do we not seek to be a forbearer of the King's Light?
At times we go to shine our light, although weak in comparison, in order to direct towards the One who created light. We are here to be an introduction to that beautiful Light, and reflect the goodness of God in a world broken by darkness, hatred, and death.
We can push even deeper to think of our "overture" as a musical piece. This idea is beautiful to me. Can we imagine our lives being a musical overture to the Illumination of God?
How sweet the sound would be, how gentle yet powerful, how colorful and joyous, how moving, how transforming!
Our overture to Illumination would be a breathtaking movement.
Different from the song of the world.
The sound of the busy streets, the scanners in the shopping malls, the bickering, the shouting, the gunfire.
This song, this overture, sounds like mercy, equality, healing, justice, openness, caring. This song sounds like Love.
However, in our struggle to sing the song of Illumination, to be the ones who announce its arrival, often our eyes fail to adjust to the brightness.
In the past few days, I have been showered in a blinding light. God is moving in my heart to see people as He sees them, and let me tell you the love with which he loves them, the love with which he loves us, is astounding. But I have been challenged in this light, because I know the truth is, my blindness comes not just from the brightness of the light I have been exposed to, but even more so by the failure of my eyes to adjust.
You see, although I have been exposed to great beauty in the loving acts of my Father, I had not yet prepared my eyes for the sudden change. I had not yet prepared my heart to be fully devoted to the cause of loving my brothers and my sisters. So, though I may be struggling to cling to a budding maturity in faith, I have been fighting the still living remains of my old life: the old life that is keeping my eyes from adjusting to the light and focusing on the glory which it reveals.
Walking in the Light takes much more than jumping in. There is something to be said for having a more comprehensive understanding of what it means to live an overture to that Light, but even when we do have some grasp on what that means, we must prepare our hearts to pursue it.
The overture to Illumination would be a beautiful song, but would pale in comparison to the song of the Illumination itself.
As a people called to image our Creator and a people called to let our own light shine before all humanity, we must first prepare ourselves in knowing the Light and hearing his song for ourselves.
Let us be still, so that we may listen to the song, but once you've heard it, don't just sit there. We can't just sit here! There is much to be done, an overture to arrange and perform, so that it may ring over the hills and the valleys, the peaks and the plains, through the bustling city streets, the quiet villages, the brick homes of the suburbs, and the tents of the forgotten. An overture to perform, so that a dark world may have new life. A song to sing that the world may know a Loving Healer. An announcement to be made that a new Kingdom is coming.
So would you join me now as we stand and sing?...
Light of the World, show us your glory, but do not let us be blinded by it. Allow the eyes of our heart not to be slow to embrace your Illumination, but to quickly take your challenge to shine brightly in our dark and broken world. It's not what you created it to be Lord, lead us to heal it with your Light. Let us shine your mercy, your justice, your hope, peace, and love, God. Let that be our overture. Let us declare your coming remedy for our brokenness. Let us sing a song with our lives that is far more vibrant that the dull gray of the the world that surrounds us. We are yours, Father. Take our hands, take our feet, make them Yours. Teach them to serve, teach them to heal. Take our lives, take the old, make us new as we submit to You.
We love you Lord, show us your Light, teach us how to love each other like You love us.
Amen.
