A few years ago I took my family to the circus. When they turned the lights out and the show began, my kids noticed these vendors all over the stadium with glow in the dark necklaces. They seemed so bright and so cool as the vendors swing them around their arm in the dark arena. These glow in the dark necklaces glowed with a bright green glow that stood out drastically. As they walked by, you could hear the kids whispering to their parents, “Daddy, I want one of those glow in the dark thingys.” My kids were no different, and like a good dad, I purchased two of them. I whipped out about ten bucks so that my kids would glow like the rest of them. They were so proud as their glow in the dark necklace lit up around them as the circus went on.
The next day brought a different reaction. After sleeping over night, they went back to these necklaces hoping to find them in the same bright state they were the night before. What they found were a couple of light blue, non glowing circles that were now worthless. These necklaces had a chemical that required a special bright light to work. Before the circus, each of these necklaces had been placed around this light for hours resulting in their glow. But after being removed from the light for a period of time the glow faded. In fact, if you turned the lights out the next day, you wouldn’t have even been able to find the necklace in the dark. This object which twelve hours before could see from across a dark 20,000 seat stadium now couldn’t be found in a dark bedroom.
Moses came down from the mountain glowing. He had been in the presence of God, experiencing His glory, and seeing His light. Now Moses glowed. The presence of God shined through His face. It was so strong that the people wanted him to cover his face and turn from him.
Here is the principle, the more time we spend around the Light, the more we will glow in the dark. We live in a dark world. Sin and rebellion against God reign all around us. Each day I realize that our culture is moving farther and farther from God. But as a follower of Jesus, God has called you to dwell in His presence, to spend time with Him each day. He desires to have a relationship with you that is as close as the one He had with Moses. We are much like the glow in the dark necklace. When we spend time close to God, hanging around His Light, we will begin glowing. His light will fill our lives and will shine off our faces. Then when we go into a dark world, the Light of Christ will be evident in our lives through our attitudes, actions, and beliefs. The world will look at us and see a difference. Some might even begin to whisper, “I wish I glowed in the dark,” and will wonder what makes you different. But to keep the glow, we have to spend time close to the Light. Without the presence of Christ in our lives, the glow will gradually wear down to nothing. Then the world won’t even notice. They won’t even see you through the darkness. The answer is that we must get back close to the Light.
Are you glowing?