“Courage is being willing to love so much that it hurts because it is a healing balm that purifies my heart and soul. A refiner’s fire. From that pain purging me, I will create something new and beautiful. That beauty will shine for all the world to see.”
Laura Lane from ‘I Touch the Heavens’
In my home, I have a beautiful painting of the Cape Forchu lighthouse in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia overlooking the Bay of Fundy inlet. It is one of many lighthouses along the Atlantic coastal region. It was painted by my great grandmother’s sister, Sue Boles. It is not only a cherished family heirloom but this spectacular and unique lighthouse it also reminds me of who and what I want to be in the world.
Have you ever noticed that there isn’t much need for lighthouses in the prairies? It is only when the seas are rough and the storms are raging that people ever look for that light on the hill.
Humans crave light and safety from troubles. We have come up with thousands of ways to light the darkness and protect ourselves from danger. We pay inordinate amounts of money to feel safe in today’s chaotic world. We want to feel mentally. emotionally, and spiritually safe.
The world is hurting, feeling lost, and afraid. Many are consumed with their addictions and vices, and have become distracted so much so that they are being swept into the gulf of misery and wo. It is safe to say that men and women’s hearts are failings them.
For this very reason, during the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus admonished his followers that they need to be a light to the world. We can be beacons of light and goodness, radiating love, compassion and kindness to bring healing to the world during these dark times.
If you have goodness in your life, things that bring you joy, that light you up – share it! If you have found truth that comforts – share it! If you have means to lighten someone else’s burdens, even a little bit – do it! If you can smile and give a compliment to brighten someone’s day – say it!
There are so many ways we can be a bright light in a dark world.
But if you find that your own light is becoming dim, if fears are overtaking you, if the darkness is crushing you, don’t give up hope. Fear is the darkness that clouds our vision.
The opposite of fear is knowledge. Knowledge and study create trust and faith. When we have hope – a beautiful vision of something, when we can see clearly a beautiful future, when we can trust enough do the things that bring us closer to the that vision, when we can trust those who love us, especially God’s love for us, all of those things will dispel the fear, dispel the darkness.
The opposite of fear is also courage.
Brené Brown, in The Gifts of Imperfection, talks a great deal about courage. She explains: “The root of the word courage is cor—the Latin word for heart.” I would go further and say that courage is about being pure in heart. Courage is also associated with being valiant which means to be strong. But do you know what makes us strong – pushing through difficult situations. Metal is made strong through a forging process and so are we. We are made strong through an emotional and spiritual forging process.
Dave Blanchard sums up that process beautifully in his book Today I Begin a New Life. “Our character has been forged in the furnace of adversity. We know what pain feels like. We cannot change the past. However, we can choose to use these reference points as a rich resource to assist us in better understanding and connecting with people. When we use our life experiences in the service of others, we will finally find purpose in our suffering, joy in our journey, and much needed healing in our souls.”
I would challenge you to look to see how your struggles and hardships and the resultant empathy that they create for you, have helped you to understand other’s struggles, have prepared you to be a beacon of light and goodness.
In what ways can you radiate love, compassion and kindness to help guide others safely to shore?
What is to give light must endure burning”
Victor Frankl