Rise and Shine

Isaiah 60:1-3

"Arise, shine;
For your light has come!
And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.

For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth,
And deep darkness the people;
But the Lord will arise over you,
And His glory will be seen upon you.

The Gentiles shall come to your light,
And kings to the brightness of your rising."

This word of the Lord was given by Isaiah at a time where there was great darkness in Isreal - they had just returned from exile, their city was destroyed, they were hated and had very little. Some of the people even challenged their faith in God. The word was more than a source of comfort and joy, but a wake up call to a new season in the life of the nation.

Most of us have this memory as kids. It's saturday morning and we're still very much asleep in bed. Our mum walks up to the curtain, throws them open, and as the light floods in she says 'Rise and shine!' - It's a beautiful day outside, it's not the time for sleeping.

The amplified version puts it beautifully "Arise [from spiritual depression to a new life], shine [be radiant with the glory and brilliance of the Lord]; for your light has come, And the glory and brilliance of the Lord has risen upon you."

To 'arise' means to lift our eyes to see, to acknowledge and declare the truth of what God has done. Live in the light of everything that He has done, is doing, and will do for us. To come out of that state of spiritual depression to a new life. In our walk with Him, in our health, in our families, in our finances, in our relationships, in all that concerns us, 'to arise' is a decision we must make.

How about 'to shine'? We are the glory of God, the express image of His brilliance. God's church is a beacon to the world. It seems we have a choice here, Matthew 5:16 mentions we should "Let our light so shine before men, that they may see our good works, and glorify our father in Heaven". You see, our light is actually His light! As we fellowship with the Spirit, as we meditate on His word, as we pray, as we rejoice and give thanks, we make contact with our source and increase the manifestation of His glory in our lives. The glory and brilliance of the Lord has risen upon us!

Jesus understood this as he made the declaration 'As long as I'm in the world, I am the light of the world!'. He also wanted us to get this as he said 'You are the light of the world'.

As we walk in the supernatural, like Jesus let us boldly make this declaration everyday 'As long as I'm in the world, I am the light of the world!'. Go out there, rise up, and shine!

By Victor Osondu