“The pantry light is out,” I proclaimed as I searched for something to snack on. When we bought our house, it was in the frame stage and far enough along that the builder would not allow any modifications to what had already been approved by the city. Since our previous house sold faster than we had anticipated, we did not want to do anything to push out the completion date. The builder was doing enough of that without our help!

The pantry has double doors, but the shelves are fairly deep, and they extend to the right and left of the doors. That created quite a few shadowy spaces. Lynne’s solution was to purchase rechargeable lights to place in various locations in the pantry. When the door was opened, the lights would come on.

After a while, the lights became dimmer and dimmer, necessitating a recharge. She would plug the light into an adapter and then plug it into a wall outlet to recharge. When the light is fully charged, a green light is displayed, and back in the pantry it goes.

Recharging is necessary these days, both with our technology and with our spiritual life. I’m too cheap to buy a new cellphone. My current phone doesn’t hold a charge (same with my laptop with the off-brand replacement battery I ordered online). Like my cellphone and my laptop, I’ve found that I also need to be recharged daily. If I don’t, my “light” isn’t very bright.

Moses knew how to light up a room.

“When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God.” (Exodus 34:29, ESV)

It goes on to say that the people of Israel were afraid to come near to him. Afterward, he would put a veil over his face until he went into God’s presence, and then he would remove it.

The Apostle James tells us, “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you” (James 4:8). When we spend time in communion with the Father through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, a transformation takes place. We may not glow in the dark like Moses, but there is a tranquility that is the hallmark of those who know their God in an intimate fashion.

Unlike my pantry lights, I need to get “plugged in” every day if there is going to be any light shining in my life.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said this to the crowd: “You are the light of the world … let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:14,16). That “light” shining is the impact of a transformed life, a life that plugs in, being renewed and recharged every day. If you want to be a “recharged” Christian, you need to start plugging yourself in.

I don’t know about you, but I want my life to be a 300-watt bulb.

What say ye, Man of Valor?
Semper Fidelis!