Bjcorbin's Blog

As she prayed, she saw her shadow on the wall and something about it troubled her.  Despite her best efforts to ignore it, her eyes kept drawing back to it; and finally in frustration, she interrupted her prayer.

“Lord, what is it about this shadow that is so troubling to me?” she asked.

She was more than a little surprised when He very clearly and immediately replied, “It is not the shadow itself that troubles you, it is what it represents.”

After a brief pause to ponder what He might be referring to, she continued, “Lord, what is it that the shadow represents?”

Again, with great clarity He said, “It represents places where the light has been blocked.”

His words sparked a revelation within her, as she added, “Or in this case, the places where I’m blocking the light.”

“Indeed” He acknowledged.

The thought of it made her feel exposed and ashamed, even though she could tell that the Lord was not upset with her.  She unconsciously began to wrestle with ideas about how she might avoid casting such a shadow; and after taking some time to consider it, she asked, “Is it even possible to walk in the light without casting a shadow?”

“It is possible”, He replied; “but it’s something that you really have to want.”

Confused, she asked, “What kind of Christian wouldn’t want that?”

“One who craves the approval of men” He said.  “For those people, it is important that the spotlight remain on them.  They see their shadow as a representation of their stature within my kingdom and thus they work hard to cast it as tall and wide as they can.  They often justify it with words like ‘anointing’ or ‘influence’, and they convince themselves that I am somehow glorified by them being glorified.  But in truth it is nothing more than the silhouette that their image creates when they stand in front of the light.  What they don’t recognize is that to those people who chose to stand in their shadow, they are nothing more than an obstruction to the light.”

A wave of conviction rolled over her, as she pondered what kind of shadow her life might be casting.  Tentatively she asked, “Lord, are there people standing in my shadow?”

“Just as the light that comes from your life, so also does your shadow affect your husband, your children, your family, friends, neighbors and co-workers.  It is a condition that is common to all men”, He replied.

“Then how is it possible to walk without casting a shadow?” she asked.

“It can only happen when the light comes from within you” He replied.

She was at once amazed by the simplicity of His answer and challenged by the implications of it.  “But how can I make the light come from within me?” she pleaded.

“You must understand that it does not happen by talking about the light, or pointing to it, or trying to control it, or trying to market it or by trying to legislate it.  The light can only come from within when you succumb to it” He said.

As His words resonated within her, tears began to well up in her eyes and she felt an overwhelming desire to surrender herself to Him anew.  As she raised her trembling hands to Him, she said, “Lord, let it be so in me”.