SHINE ON!

Ok, so the theme for the summer is SHINE, not shrink. This is based off a medley of things:
-Matthew 5: ¹⁴"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
-"Shine On" by Needtobreathe http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqPGbGUlcjY
-Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne
-quote by Marianne Williamson:

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

Now is the time to shine! What if we really embraced the fact that we are created to shine, what then would be our excuse for not?! Exactly, there is none. Instead of shrinking in to familiarity, complacency, and comfort let us blaze through our families, friends, communities, and even nations to catch others on fire as well. As bugs are attracted to a simple lightbulb, we are attracted my more to the Ultimate Source of Light and the One Who Shines the Brightest. In Revelation 21 or 22, it John receives a revolutionary vision that we will no longer have the need for lights other than God because He will shine brightly enough (not just enough, but more than we could ever need or desire). Also, Jesus teaches us how to pray by saying "on earth as it is in heaven" ... so connect the dots! We can be that by letting our lights shine! How are you changing your city or people you come into contact with? This is not rhetorical: I want to know! When I come back from Mexico, what if I came back to a North Carolina, a Chapel Hill, a Raleigh different than I ever had known?

I was a bit uncomfortable in El Gusano for a few days because I felt ambiguous, nebulous, and hazy (the opposite of light, which illuminates and provides clarity). I am really trying to break into the group of muchachos (or boys my age) here and become friends with them. They are very solemn and proud to desconocidos (people they do not know). But this is where I am weakest, how can I be expressive, on-fire Jacob without being able to have easy conversation? Then I remembered, fire does not choose where it goes ... it blazes through wherever without asking questions or second-guessing itself. Light does not wait to feel completely comfortable to invade the darkness, it simply does at the fastest speed we can fathom!

Shine On!
Jacob