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Lighthouse

One of my closest friends IM-ed me yesterday to share a somewhat comical dream she had the night before.  She dreamed I was about to move into a new house.  The neat part was my new place was actually a lighthouse.  (The humorous part was that we were sneaking into the locked  house to see if my new furniture which is oversized would fit.) Anyway, immediately my mind went to Jesus is The Lighthouse and we are to "abide in Him."  (John 15:4)

So, I have been thinking about this dream for the past two days.  Abiding, living, setting up residence in The Lighthouse.  How do you do that exactly?  Well, let's begin with the structure.  A lighthouse is defined by Wikipedia as a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses (or fire in older times) and is used as an aid to navigation.
Proverbs 18:10 "The name of the LORD is a fortified tower; the righteous run to it and are safe."
2 Samuel 22:29  "You, LORD, are my lamp; the LORD turns my darkness into light."
Psalm 142:3  "When my spirit grows faint within me, it is you who watch over my way."
Isaiah 30:21 "And if you leave God's paths and go astray, you will hear a Voice behind you say, 'No, this is the way; walk here.'"
Okay, so we have established He is The Lighthouse.  Now, How Do We abide in Him?
1 John 4:15 "Anyone who confesses (acknowledges, owns) that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides (lives, makes His home) in him and he [abides, lives, makes his home] in God."
1 John 3:24 All who keep His commandments [who obey His orders and follow His plan, live and continue to live, to stay and] abide in Him, and He in them. [They let Christ be a home to them and they are the home of Christ.]
And finally, the Why Should We or the Why Would We abide in Him? 
John 15:4  "Dwell in Me, and I will dwell in you. [Live in Me, and I will live in you.] Just as no branch can bear fruit of itself without abiding in (being vitally united to) the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you abide in Me."

John 15:7  "If you live in Me [abide vitally united to Me] and My words remain in you and continue to live in your hearts, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you."
1 John 2:28 "...abide (live, remain permanently) in Him, so that when He is made visible, we may have and enjoy perfect confidence..."
To sum it up...He is the Strong Tower (or Lighthouse) and by confessing He is the Son of God, by keeping His commandments, and by loving one another we can abide in Him.  We will do this because in that Strong tower there is safety, perfect confidence, and His words which according to Psalm 119:105 are "a lamp to our feet and a light unto our path." 

If Christ is in us and we are in Him, then we really are "the light of the world."  I am currently reading a book by Tim Hansel entitled Dancin' Toward the Dawn.  He cited this very cute, yet very profound story and I would like to share it with you.  It is a conversation between a mother and her daughter regarding the sermon they've just heard.  The little girl explains she enjoyed church that day, but she admitted to being a bit confused.

She asked, "The pastor said that God was bigger than we are.  Is that true?"  The mother answers affirmatively.  "He also said that God lives inside of us.  Is that true, Mommy?" "Yes," replied the mother.  "Well, then," said the girl, "if God is bigger than us, and if He lives inside of us, then shouldn't some of Him show through?"

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