THURSDAY - October 29

Read. Matthew 5:14-16
14 You are the light of the world. A city on top of a hill can’t be hidden.15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they put it on top of a lampstand, and it shines on all who are in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before people, so they can see the good things you do and praise your Father who is in heaven.

Reflect. John Winthrop left England in 1630 and would later become the governor fo the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He famously stated: “We shall be as a city upon a hill.” Future leaders in America have called upon this language as an ideal for the United States. Perhaps, most famously, Ronald Reagan spoke these words after being elected as president in 1980: 

• I believe that Americans in 1980 are every bit as committed to that vision of a shining "city on a hill,"         as were those long ago settlers ... These visitors to that city on the Potomac do not come as white or black, red or yellow; they are not Jews or Christians; conservatives or liberals; or Democrats or Republicans. They are Americans awed by what has gone before, proud of what for them is still… a shining city on a hill. 
• Others who have aspired or been elected president of The United States have also employed this language, including: John F. Kennedy, Barak Obama, Mitt Romney, and Ted Cruz. This language of being a “city on a hill” is not unfamiliar in the ideals of the American experiment. 
• However, Jesus never said, “America is a city on a hill.” Instead, speaking to his followers, he said, “You are the light of the world. A city on top of a hill…” America, or any earthy nation, is not what Jesus had in mind. Instead, it is the church, it is followers of Jesus, who are this light to the world. 
• As the light of the world, Jesus instructs you not to hide your light. Jesus instructs you to “let your light shine before people, so they can … praise” God. Jesus says that it is the way you live your faith that will guide others to praising God. How is your faith and life a light to others? How is your faith a guide to help others find God? What can you do, today, to help someone worship God because of the way you live. 

Pray. God, it is so easy to look toward others to live as an example of faith, instead of living it myself. Help me to live in a way that is worthy of being your light in the world. Guide me to live in a way that leads other people to you. Amen

COMMUNITY PRAYER LIST

Doug Lawson. Collier. Glenn Ethridge. Adam Funderburk.  Mary Reber.  Linda Harmon. Betty Carolyn Ward. Albert Rasanke. Lois Robinson. Ross Henley. Tiny & Donald Creasman. Bill and Barbara Buchanan. Bonnie Brenner. Baker Family. Robert McKenzie Family. Kibler family. Carolyn Harlow. Jeff Green. Earl Graves. Mickey Huff. Huff & Welch families. Helen Leigh. Paul Huffman. Schools, Teachers, Staff, Parents, Students. Church regathering plans. Layman family. Charlene Withrow. Brandon Casteel. Dirk Orr family. Smith family. Crowder family. Lillard family. Family of Floyd Eaton. Family of Eddie Rynes. Robertson Family. Harmon Family. Nancy Ryan & family. Bobby Roberts. Elizabeth May & family. Melvin Rinehart. Susan Rogers. Brandon Haugh.