5 Ways to Be a Light in a Dark World

There’s a lot of darkness in what is supposed to a sunny and bright summer. In July, five officers in Dallas were killed “ambush-style” after weeks of tension rose nationwide between #blacklivesmatter protestors and police officers. Earlier in the summer, police shot two black men in two different states after pulling the men over. There have been rallies and protests and Twitter posts and threats, and opinions all over the place.

But what’s the Christian response to this? Many times we feel like we need to take up a side. In this day and age, the problem has been promoting that side on social media, so we take our case to Facebook and Twitter and we post an opinion or a photo or a meme that we know will start a debate. We want our Christian friends to know we’re loyal to “justice and goodness,” and we want our non-Christian friends to see we’re promoting “equality and fairness.”

But we’re not called to make an opinion. We’re called to be a light. So how do we do that?

Pray

Our first response is prayer. We have to pray for Dallas and for the families of the two black men shot. We have to pray for police officers and for the country. It’s such a turbulent time in America, and we need a God who is bigger than us to show us grace and mercy.

James 1:19-21 says, “This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God. Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls.”

We need prayer to set our heads straight before we say anything about what’s going on in America.

Take a Social Media Break

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The easy thing to do is to post an article or photo on Facebook or Twitter that is one-sided or very opinionated. It’s bound to cause a debate and as you respond to critics it will continue to fuel the fire. Instead, take a break from the opinions firing on Facebook. Take a day or two days away from Twitter and other social media sites.

If you decide you can’t stay away, refrain from posting links or worse, posting links and then offering your opinion on those links. The bible is the word and the truth. We’re not. We don’t need to have an opinion and flaunt it. As Christians, our job is to be the light and show God’s glory. We’re not doing that when we’re stirring up fights on Facebook and tearing up friendships because we’ve launched into a tirade over our opinion.

Tony Evans, of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas said: “Until the church leads the way—and we’ve been co-conspirators in this problem—of bringing God’s point of view to the culture, we’re only going to see more of this,” he told CT. “We must take advantage of the opportunity that we are afforded to make a difference. We must pray but we must do more than pray. We must become salt and light in a unified way to a culture that is desperate for answers. This is our opportunity and we must take advantage of it.”

Read the Bible

The best way to become a light is to read God’s Word. The truth is God’s Word and if we want the truth we must go to it. It’s no opinion. It’s our guidebook for life.

There are a lot of opinion articles out there right now about what’s going on. Some say we should do this and do that. Some say we shouldn’t do this or do that. We should have this as our profile picture and wear this shirt that says this message. But what if we stopped reading those articles for a moment and started reading the Bible? What if we reached for truth?

We need to equip ourselves with the word of God rather than facts and figures about police shootings in the past 10 years or violence in America percentages to bolster our arguments. God’s truth trumps all. Let’s dive back into God’s Word and out of the arguments.

Don’t Despair

As Christians, we shouldn’t be shocked by the violence. After all, Galatians tells us that man reaps what he sows and as a world, as a whole, we have sown unwisely. Jesus told us that there would be trouble in this world, but that he overcomes it. The church and the light overcome the darkness.

That’s why we need to be the light. People need to see the light in this moment. It’s OK to be sad, but we can’t despair. We can’t lose hope. We have hope in a God that moves mountains and sends his son to die for us. That’s our light. That’s why we don’t despair. That’s why we hold fast to the truth.

“Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.” 1 Corinthians 16:13-14