Emmanuel Lutheran Church

January 2023

Welcome to the new year and the season of Epiphany! Epiphany is the season of the church year that especially focuses on the miracles of Jesus as a revelation to the world that he is the Messiah. Light is a theme throughout the season. The light of the star that guided the Magi to the infant Jesus begins our Epiphany journey. The light that shines in the darkness, the true light which enlightens everyone, accompanies us along the way.

Jesus said “you are the light of the world…no one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house.” That makes sense, right? We need light to see. The brighter the light, the clearer we see.

We own an older model motorhome. This fall I purchased some new LED lights to replace the old ones. What a difference! The brighter light of the LED’s made everything in the camper easier to see.

This is who Jesus is for us, a light revealing the wonder of God to us in clear detail. Living in the true light of Jesus the things of this world become clearer as well. We begin to see what we could not before. We are awakened to God’s work in our world and our self-centered story suddenly becomes a part of a much larger story that, living in the dimness of self, we could not see before.

We begin to see God revealed to us in new and wonderful ways, in ways we would not have expected or even imagined. We find God in places we never would have thought to look, but where Jesus has been lighting the path. Jesus reminds us of this when he says “just as you did it to the least of these…you did it to me.”

You are a reflection of the light of Christ. You are the lamp put on a lampstand that Jesus mentioned, giving light to the whole house, helping others to see the goodness of our God.

May this Epiphany season call us to a greater awareness of God’s gracious love and awaken us to the marvels of God’s guiding light in an ever darkening world. A light, I remind you, that this darkness can never overcome!

Blessed Epiphany!
Pastor Alan