Arise and Shine

by Macy Johnson

“Arise, shine, for your light has come,

and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.”

(Isaiah 60:1 NIV)

 

A warm, tingling sensation emerged on my upper lip. It had been a long time since I’d had one of those dreaded fever blisters. I quickly downed two Acyclovir tablets and a large glass of water. The white pills helped to calm the heated chemical reaction below the skin. Ice cubes applied to my lip’s surface helped to alleviate the pain.

 

Taking care of a fever blister is the epitome of drudgery: dull and irksome labor. Oswald Chambers wrote, “If we will arise and shine, drudgery becomes divinely transfigured. When the Lord does a thing through us, He always transfigures it.” Transfigure means to transform an object into something more beautiful or elevated.

 

Sometimes it is hard to climb out of bed and face repetition in one form or another. It may be dull or exciting. Most mornings I run the days of the week through my mind to see what I have to look forward to. That can be spiritually dangerous. If I haphazardly fill my days with fluff to experience joy and satisfaction, I could miss the best things God has for me.

 

I trust we all face dull, menial tasks on a regular basis. Perhaps those are the things God transforms into something beautiful and meaningful. He tells me to rise and shine, fever blister or not, for His Light has come and is shining through me.

 

“Do everything without complaining or arguing,

so that you may become blameless and pure,

children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation,

in which you shine like stars in the universe.”

(Philippians 2:14-15 NIV)

 

I will allow the Holy Spirit to transform the drudgery in my life for His glory. I hope you will, too!