by Lora Hattendorf
“To shine, we must keep in his light, sunning our souls in it by thinking of what he said and did, and would have us think and do. So shall we drink the light like some diamonds, keep it, and shine in the dark.”
(George MacDonald, The Hope of the Gospel)
Diamonds draw me. Christmas lights mesmerize me. Anything spangled, sparkly, sequined, “who knows how,” anything glittered or glowing has an unmitigated effect on my soul. I’m always on a quest for that shine, as if it is somehow inexorably linked with the meaning of life.
Early in my search for the meaning of life, I read the words from the Gospel of John, “In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.” (John 1:4, NIV) I then understood that the meaning of life was not about me; it was for me. My life originated in the person of Jesus Christ, the creator, originator.
That originator gave my life light and meaning. The Meaning of Life Himself gave my life meaning, and that person, Jesus, wanted me! I chose to say yes. It was simple, really, as simple as taking a drink of water.
As I grew, however, I struggled to understand the concept of an all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-loving God.
Why did a good God knowingly allow bad things to happen?
Either, I assumed, God was not all-powerful or He was not all-loving. Perhaps a loving God knew what would happen, but could not intervene to help. No one could call that powerful.
Or perhaps God knew what could happen, but would not prevent the evil. No one could call that good. But my thoughts changed when I had children of my own.
Initially, while I first glimpsed that Jesus was the Meaning of Life, I would try to pray, but my words were so dull and dusty I skipped over that part.
How could you speak in your mind to Another’s mind—the mind of God?
Yet I wanted to know if He would truly hear me. I could see creation. Therefore, I knew God existed. I heard a still, small voice. Therefore, I suffered an incredible thirst for knowing if Jesus was really alive.
Not until I started to drink the light did I understand. I read the Bible, taking the words into my mind like the drinking of cold water on a hot and dusty day. So I did drink—page after page, year after year, by reading, thinking, applying the Word of God. And somehow, like the priming of a pump, once that first drink whetted my soul, the Source of the water drew. And drew. And drew.
Now when I tried to pray, I took to focusing my eye on a bit of sparkle—the gleam on the edge of the wood, the arc in the curve of metal, the spark of the diamond in my wedding ring—light in the physical that reminded me of the spiritual, Jesus, the light of the world.
In John 8:12 (NIV), Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
I could almost envision that inside the light stood the realm of God. I prayed towards the light, like towards the not-yet-risen sun.
What if God chooses to prove His love in knowing all, allowing all, but by His power prove his love through it all?
When I had children of my own, I saw what I could not see before. I wanted my sons to reflect my ways and my teaching.
For a time I could force them to, but then they grew up. Now their test lies in their refraction—my greatest joy.
They say the secret of the diamond is refraction—its total internal reflection and dispersion.
Just like sunlight shinning through water. But how? What does it mean to drink the light?
“To shine, we must keep in his light, sunning our souls in it by thinking of what he said and did, and would have us think and do. So shall we drink the light like some diamonds, keep it, and shine in the dark.”
(George MacDonald, The Hope of the Gospel)
I eventually began to discern the difference between refracted light and its Source.
How to Drink the Light Like Diamonds:
1. Keep in His light.
Just one step will take you from the shadow to the light. Take a stand. Jesus said “Follow me” 20 times in the New Testament. What is that one step you should take? Is it joining a Christian fellowship? Is it sharing your faith in Christ? How can you stand in the light?
2. Sun your soul in His light.
Read the amazing Bible with your own eyes. Then bask in it. Turn off the TV and silence the phone and listen to the Bible. (Download the YouVersion app for your commute. Start with the Book of John.). Meet with other Christ-followers in warmhearted, kindred commonality and study the Bible with other true believers.
3. Think of what He said and did.
Listen to believers who can explain what Jesus actually said and did. My favorites are the books or podcasts of The Commands by Michael Phillips and The Hope of the Gospel by George MacDonald in book form or LibriVox recording.
4. Think of what He wants you to say and do.
This is the hardest one of all. Think. Say. Do. What would Jesus have you say and do? In searching for things to say, and how to say them, I find immense help in programs like Just Thinking by Ravi Zacharias International Ministries, in Quantum – The Wee Flea Podcast by David Robertson, and in articles found and published on sites like Kindred Grace.
Don’t worry. Like the tiny nightlights all over your house that light your way in the middle of the night, your light–no matter how great or small–will do the same to your somnambulistic world. You just have to reflect the light. Jesus originates the light. They will see.
In the end, what if the meaning of life is only understood through the meaning of death—His death for mine?
Only by His death could He rise again. Many people miss the point of Jesus dying on the cross instead of us. The point was the Resurrection. Jesus really did rise from the dead. That changes everything. I can live again too, a second life, if you will.
In Jesus was life, and that life was the light of mankind. It is my choice to shine. It is my choice to drink the light, yet I was created like a diamond for refracting, with an internal reflection to keep and disperse like diamonds to shine in the dark.
Why does a good God knowingly allow bad things to happen?
Consider how and why a diamond is cut. Mature Christian Allegra McBirney, writes:
“A diamond shines from reflected light… And, plainly, the Christian has the ultimate Light Source, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Light of the World. It is Christ’s shining deep within which results in that spiritual sparkle which cannot be duplicated by the make-believer. And every time the Lord puts a believer against the cutting wheel, in processing him or her spiritually, it’s for the purpose of producing an additional facet from which to reflect the Savior’s light.”
(Allegra McBirney, God’s Diamonds)
Do you find your life against the cutting wheel? You can trust His love.
Who do you know that needs the true meaning of life? Oh, that they would see and hear about Him in you.
Having a hard time praying? Just read His words, the source of light. Focus on the sparkle.
Searching for the meaning of life? Then drink the light, like some diamonds, keep it, and shine in the dark.
Lora loves writing, teaches art, edits, paints, helps her mate, lives the adventure of a post home-schooling mom to now-grown sons, follows the Jesus of the Bible, but not necessarily in that order. “Obedience is the key to every door.” (George MacDonald, The Marquis of Lossie)
Visit Lora’s blog, find her on Facebook or send her an email.
Diamond Photography: JenniMarie Photography
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