"I am the light..."

Last weekend, something hit me as I walked around enjoying sweet fellowship and taking pictures of the world around me.

I really noticed the way light affects how my pictures turn out. If you’re into photography at all, you have probably found out that lighting affects pretty much every single picture, and your task is to figure out how to work with the light you have in order to make the most beautiful picture possible. This time of year, the light is incredible. The light runs through leafs that are assorted colors: oranges, browns, maroons, and reds and it makes them come alive without the light, they’d be a bit dull, still able to be appreciated, but not as beautiful as they could be. It’s as if they were made for the light, in order to shine all of their glory.

Light does this to people as well, and their eyes and faces especially. When light shines on someone's face and eyes the right way, they light up and reflect that light back to you. The person’s face is illuminated and suddenly they are striking… you notice beautiful features about that person that never quite stood out to you before. There are shadows and the face and the person’s eyes are illuminated. That person was beautiful, but now their beauty is on a showcase for everyone to see.

What I find most intriguing about everything I have said thus far is that in John, Jesus claims to be light.

John 8:12 - Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Jesus is the light that illuminates our faces and fills our eyes with brightness and color. He is the one that gives life and makes things beautiful. And then, naturally, we reflect it.

“You make beautiful things… out of us.” - Gungor