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Psalm 27:1-4

The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom then shall I fear? * the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom then shall I be afraid?

When evildoers came upon me to eat up my flesh, *
it was they, my foes and my adversaries, who
stumbled and fell.

Though an army should encamp against me, *
yet my heart shall not be afraid;

And though war should rise up against me, *
yet will I put my trust in him.

It has been a difficult time for everyone during the past eight months. Lives lost, jobs disappeared, and loved ones could not gather together to share laughs and love. While this pandemic is once in a 100 year event it nevertheless reflects the tribulations that men and women face when alone without the Savior and without faith.

In Psalm 27 the Psalmist speaks about God as being his light and his salvation. In his faith there is nothing and no one to fear. Pandemics, conflicts and illness are all around us but the one constant is faith in God‘s almighty power and his love and compassion toward us as individuals. All what we need is to trust in his mercy and his love for us, his people. In this time of unimaginable stress I come to God in prayer, praising his name and affirming my faith in his power and mercy.

Psalm 43:3-6

Send out your light and your truth, that they may lead me,* and bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling;

That I may go to the altar of God, to the God of my joy and gladness; * and on the harp I will give thanks to you, O God my God.

Why are you so full of heaviness, O my soul? *
and why are you so disquieted within me?

Put your trust in God; * for I will yet give thanks to him, who is the help of my countenance, and my God.

Right now I think we all need to be led. We ask for the Lord to shine his light and lead us but sometimes we are not as good about following that light. We think that maybe our way is better and stray from the path that is put before us. I sometimes look at what is ahead and think that there is no way that this could be the right way. That is when my soul gets heavy and I figure out that I went the wrong way. The pandemic has done a lot of damage as far as knowing which way to go and who to believe. It seems that everyone has their own idea of what is right and what is wrong. The health professionals agree on most things but have their own opinions as well and that makes it confusing for us. We have to have faith that God will direct us to the right decisions and be ready to listen when he does.

This is where trust comes in. We need to put our trust in the Lord and let him guide us in the right direction. Not only in the decisions with the virus but with our everyday life as well. The old WWJD saying comes to mind. What would Jesus do? He was many times put to the test but each time relied on his Heavenly Father to lead him. That is hard for us to do but it is important for us to follow his light. It all comes down to trust. Faith is built on trust.

Isaiah 60.19-22

The sun shall no longer be your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you by night; but the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. Your sun shall no more go down, or your moon withdraw itself; for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended. Your people shall all be righteous; they shall possess the land forever. They are the shoot that I planted, the work of my hands, so that I might be glorified. The least of them shall become a clan, and the smallest one a mighty nation; I am the Lord; in its time I will accomplish it quickly.

When I think of the sun and the moon and the celestial bodies in the sky, I think of fixed points of reference. Sailors have and continue to use these constant flames as beacons when traveling the vast and disorienting oceans. Mankind would hardly have dared take to the open sea without some way of charting their course and their return voyage.

Yet even the sun and stars can be obscured by the weather. Storms can overtake a ship in minutes, blotting out the sky and leaving seafarers tossed by the waves, blown off course and fighting for their lives.

I can't count how many time I have felt that way in my life. Tossed by the waves. Blown off course. Fighting for my life. Often it didn't take much of a storm. This year has been tumultuous to say the least. A global pandemic. Friends and family becoming ill. Economic insecurities. Political clashes and cultural changes. The unsurety in the things I take for granted.

Fixed points of reference were being obscured.

But deeper ones remain. Watching my daughter grow up and the constant look of joy and wonder on her face reminds me of how much beauty there is in the world. Sharing this amazing and frightening journey with Kim as we grow older (and hopefully wiser). Reaching out to friends I hadn't spoken to in years (although often just through emails and social media). Enjoying the brief moments of interaction outside with neighbors or watching people greet one another from across the street. I am reminded of how important we are to one another. How dependent we are to each other's well being.

That is how "God's glory" is manifested in my experience. Through every interaction with every person (no matter the distance), as they shine light into my life and I endeavor to shine light back just like the moon and the stars.