Ephesians 5:8-20. Have you ever parked your car in a lot that was light with the reddish colored mercury vapor lights? When you looked at your car, it wasn't the color you were accustomed to seeing. Have you ever thought that maybe as we examined our lifestyle and our way of thinking about things, we were doing it in the wrong kind of light? Because we were taught in school or grew up in our family with certain values or the community we lived in thought a certain way, does not make that way of seeing things the way they really are. Natural sunlight or the equivalent determines what colors should look like. God's Word is the only trustworthy light for examining our lives. Perhaps the WWJD (What Would Jesus Do) is a pretty good start, but I think that all too often it becomes a cute popular slogan that doesn't often pass through our brain. Besides we are not Jesus. Perhaps it is better to say: judging from the character that we observe in Jesus and the way He responded to people in various situations and the general principles of God's Word; would Jesus be pleased or feel comfortable with our thinking and behavior. Would we be comfortable if we could see Jesus sitting across the table or room from us as we were engaged in the various activities that make up our lives? In order to make any kind of accurate assessment of our lives, we need to get the Word in us. We need to get to know Jesus as a resident in our lives, as our Savior, our God, and our friend. Our model always must be Jesus as seen in the Scripture through the eyes of the Holy Spirit. The last half of Ephesians 4 and the first part of chapter 5 give us insight into some of the areas that may need some serious immediate attention. Spend a lot of time with Ephesians 5:10 - "...find out what pleases the Lord."

Learning to Live in the Light