For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 4:6).

A friend described looking into a Christmas sky where geese flying in v-formation reminded him of Christmas trees celebrating Christ’s birth. The more he looked, the more he realized the wonder of God’s work.

The reason that my friend could see the geese in the night sky was because the moon was reflecting off their breasts. And the reason that the moon shown so brightly was that it was reflecting the sun on the other side of the world. 

 When God shines into our hearts the glory of Christ, in whose face is revealed the glory of the One who gave the sun its light, then we are seeing the magnificence of heavenly grace beyond our world. 

The glory is displayed in us, but it is not from us. Our lives reflect the glory of God who delights to shine his grace from his Son into our hearts. 

We rejoice in the beauty we are able to receive and to reflect it because of the glory that shines from the goodness and grace of heaven. 

Prayer:
Father, help me today to rejoice in the light of Christ that you have shined into my heart and to reflect your love and grace revealed in him to those around me.