Do you remember watching the TV show, Little House on the Prairie? I especially remember the episode where the oldest daughter, Mary was losing her eyesight. She was sitting at the table trying to read, and she reached out and pulled the coal oil light closer. At that time, she didn’t realize that the problem was within herself and not in external circumstances and certainly not with the light. The lamp was burning as bright as it ever had. It was her own sight that had dimmed.

When our spiritual eyesight dims, do we blame the light? Jesus said in John 8:12 (NIV), “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”  Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. If he was the light of the world then, he still is today, and he hasn’t moved.

If we cannot see our way, the problem lies within us. Something is clouding our view. It may be sin in our lives. It may be our own preconceived notions of where the light should be, or it may be that we don’t want to go where the light is leading us. We often get in our own way.

The light of the world verse in John doesn’t mean that we will see the entire path clearly. It means that we need to follow the light one step at a time. If we follow Jesus closely, he promises that we will not walk in darkness.

So, why do we find ourselves in dark places from time to time? We often veer off the path and start searching for the light when our way gets too dark. We distance ourselves from the light and don’t realize it until we can no longer see. Let’s seek to follow the light of the world every day, so we don’t have to frantically search for the light when we are in trouble.

One of the best ways to follow the light is to stay in the Word. Reading the Bible everyday will guide us and keep us on the right path. Are you following the light today?

“The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple” (Psalm 119:130)