From your friends at SpiritLed Woman
Power Up! for the week of August 28, 2006

A GODLY GLOW
By Elaine L. Bridge

Darkness was depending around me as I pulled up to the stop sign and stopped the car. I quickly checked the rearview mirror to make sure there were no vehicles waiting impatiently behind me. And then in eager anticipation I turned my head toward the weed-filled field on my right, and immediately smiled in delight. Thousands of fireflies lit up the night like a sparkler on the 4th of July. For some reason this particular piece of land has a firefly population that exceeds any other in the area, and this nighttime display (when I'm lucky enough to catch it) never fails to thrill me.

I've had a fascination with lightning bugs this summer. Nightly at dusk I've grabbed a cup of coffee and headed for my front step, where I sit and survey the year ahead as the light show begins. It's become a necessity in my life—a time and place written into my daily schedule in which I stop all activity, enjoy the quiet of the approaching night and soak in the peace of the moment. I've found it to be a time of silent reflection on the events of the day and what, if anything, I managed to accomplish for God.

Curiosity led me to the encyclopedia, where I found that the fireflies' glow is a phenomenon known as "bioluminescence" defined as "living" light. It occurs when oxygen reacts with a substance called "luciferin" in the presence of the enzyme luciferase. The color and the timing of the lighting sequence are unique to the individual animal species in which it occurs. The end result of this process in fireflies is the familiar green glow which kids try to capture in jars and which lingers on our windshields or on the pavement when one such bug meets an untimely end.

Perhaps it was the name "Lucifer" in the words luciferin and luciferase that caused me to look in the spiritual realm for a parallel in this occurrence in nature. Although bioluminescence does not occur in mammals, we who are born again are most certainly filled with the light of the living God, and we likewise "glow" when the breath of life inside us comes in contact with the evil surrounding us. We become visible in the darkness. Suddenly there are sparkles, even if just for a moment, that those around us can't help but see and notice as they travel through increasingly dark days and long nights.

There's purpose to it all, of course. Fireflies light up to be noticed by potential mates. Their illuminated dance is an important ritual in the scheme of insect romance. Too often we likewise strive to be noticed, to see our names written somewhere in the world in which we live—on a theater marquee, printed in ink on a cover of a book we've written, or stenciled on a metal faceplate on a (corner) office door. And in doing so we miss the whole point of our existence, which is the part we play in the divine romance of a Bridegroom searching for His long-lost bride. Our job is to help lost souls find the love they've been looking for by making God visible to the world around us.

I can remember celebrating the 4th of July as a child—the fun of holding a sparkler in my hand and writing my name in light across the black sky. And all of us who are children of God can experience even greater joy when we use the gifts that God has given us to write His name across the darkness, knowing that our names are already written across His heart.

These simple words of an old childhood song, "This little light of mine, I'm going to let it shine," still ring true today. Let's make it a song in our own hearts as we carry the light of His presence into the dark world around us.

EDITOR'S NOTE: There are many important matters facing the nation today. Legislators are debating over crucial issues such as gay marriage, gay rights, partial-birth abortion and the true meaning of the separation of church and state. Government agencies are seeking ways to help individual states recover from recent storms. The president is trying to bring a peaceful transition to a new government in Iraq. It's time for believers everywhere to rise up and PRAY! We must come into unity with one another and with the heart of God.

To this end, we have developed a Web site to encourage you to become active in intercession and to provide resources to help you on your prayer journey. The site also posts prayer alerts with relevant points of intercession from prophetic ministers throughout the body of Christ with whom we have relationships. These prayer alerts are updated on a regular basis and may be e-mailed to you directly free of charge if you choose to receive them. Visit the site at www.prayerinitiative.com to view the resources and subscribe to receive the prayer alerts.

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