The Struggle to Shine
I did what many of us do when we’re hurt or disillusioned: I got quiet. I pulled back. I stopped using my voice. I stopped posting. I stopped podcasting. I stopped speaking. I stopped leading.
It felt safe, like pulling the covers over your head on a stormy night. I told myself, “Maybe this is the right thing to do. Maybe being quiet is what God wants from me.”
But in the stillness, in the quiet, Jesus began to whisper to me, “Don’t hide your light under a basket. Put it on a stand. Shine.”
His words took me back to Matthew 5, to that familiar passage: “You are the light of the world.”
It was a simple truth but a profound reminder. The world needs our light. Your light.
The Power of Light
Light does incredible things. It brings shame to its knees. It exposes sin, and instead of condemnation, it brings healing. Light draws people out of the cages of despair and confusion and shows them the way home.
Jesus, the ultimate source of light, said, “While I am in the world, I am the light of the world” (John 9:5). His life was the perfect example of how to live as light in a darkened world. Everywhere Jesus went, light followed. He brought healing to the sick, hope to the hopeless, and restoration to the broken.
It’s no wonder the psalmist writes, “You, LORD, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light” (Psalm 18:28). We can’t manufacture our own light. It comes from Him, and when we follow Him, we never walk in darkness because His light lights our path (Psalm 119:105).
Why We Hide Our Light
If light is so powerful, why do we hide it? I think, for many of us, it’s fear. Fear of rejection. Fear of failure. Fear of what others might think if we truly let our light shine.
Sometimes, it’s disappointment that causes us to pull back. We feel like we’re shining our light, but the world around us stays dark, unchanged. It can be discouraging when we don’t see the immediate fruit of our labor. We may think, “What difference does my light really make?” And so, we quietly place the lamp under a basket, letting it dim.
There’s also comfort in hiding. Let’s be honest, it’s easier to keep our light confined to our safe spaces. It’s easy to share our light with those who are already in the light—our family, our Christian friends, our church communities. But what happens when we’re called to let our light shine in spaces that are unfamiliar, uncomfortable, or even hostile?
Answering the Call to Shine
The more I sat with Jesus and this passage from Matthew 5, the more I realized that hiding was never an option. Not really. We are meant to shine. That’s what we were created for.
There is no greater joy than seeing someone find their way out of the darkness because you allowed your light to shine before them. As Matthew 5:16 says, “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” When people see our light, it’s not about drawing attention to ourselves. It’s about pointing them to the Father, the source of all light.
When we stop sharing our light, when we keep it only for those closest to us, we’re robbing the world of something it desperately needs. The world needs the light of Christ, and it’s through us—broken, imperfect vessels—that His light shines the brightest.
What Will You Do With Your Light?
Jesus shared parables about the Kingdom of God, likening it to hidden treasures and flawless pearls—things so precious that they must be pursued at all costs (Matthew 13:44-46). We carry that treasure within us. The question is: What are we doing with it?
Are we hoarding it for ourselves, or are we willing to put it on display for the world to see?
Ask Jesus to reveal how He wants you to shine this week. Maybe it’s in your workplace, your family, or your neighborhood. Maybe it’s on social media, in your writing, or through acts of kindness to strangers. Whatever it looks like, remember that He will guide you. He will provide the light; you just need to be willing to shine it.
“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life’” (John 8:12).
The world needs the light that only Jesus can bring. But He’s calling you and me to be the ones who carry that light, to stand tall, like a city on a hill, unashamed and unhidden, so that others may find their way.
Are you ready to let your light shine?
