During this trying time - with people are isolated and nervous, perhaps even scared of what is to come - Marion Medical Mission (MMM) thought their supporters might enjoy remembering past miracles and connecting with others to pray for everyone affected by the virus, both here and around the world. They are sending a short devotion each Monday, Wednesday & Friday morning, continuing until quarantine restrictions are lifted. These devotions have been written by volunteers and staff members about their experiences with MMM; each is uplifting, positive and beautifuly written. We think these devotions are timeless and may provide comfort and connection for those who read them and pray with them. If you'd like to be on added to that list, email MMM HERE
Sharing the love of Jesus by providing safe, clean, sustainable sources of drinking water to the extreme poor in sub-Saharan Africa, Marion Medical Mission is one of our mission partners at Grace Presbyterian Church of Midland, Texas, and we STRONGLY encourage you to read these devotions to learn more about - and pray for! - their mission.
Wrinkles and Radiance
Rev. Dick McFarlin
Volunteer, Texas
"I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life." John 8:12
What stories do our faces tell about our life experiences? I enjoy looking at pictures of our African friends taken by so many of our American volunteers. Perhaps it's because I am in my seventh decade of life that I am particularly drawn to pictures of people who are in the later stages of life.
If wrinkles could talk, what would each of them say about the experiences that have shaped who they are as people?
I remember a picture of a gogo (elderly woman) in her Women's Guild uniform. She was walking with the aid of a walking stick as she came to church. Her face was both serene and radiant. It was obvious to me that she had been following Jesus for a long time. At that point in her life she was not walking in darkness but had the light of life!
In the person of Jesus, God has drawn a line against destructive darkness. We have been called to disengage from deathly self-seeking ways and when we do that, God's gift of light and life comes. That light and life requires that we give up our selfish controlling ways.
When it comes to our common life, whether in our churches or communities, God intends to reorder that common life on new terms. He sends His Holy Spirit to help us.
How does the Holy Spirit do that? There's a lesson we can learn from the jacaranda tree with its beautiful flowers. As the tree yields to the light, the light becomes a part of its life and shares its beauty with the people and animal life around it. Even so, in a kind of divine photosynthesis, the Holy Spirit's work is to transform each of us so that the light of life becomes a part of who we are!
Application Question: Can you identify the times in your life when you have walked in darkness? The times and places in which you have yielded to and walked in the light? Even if your face has wrinkles and there are crow's feet around your eyes, does your face shine with His light?
Prayer: Lord, your love continues to both form and transform me so that I can be a bearer of light to a world struggling in darkness. Keep me yielded to Your Spirit.
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