JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Light Reflection is from James 1:17.

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”

The blessings of God are expressions of His love for us. These blessings enrich our lives in various ways and reflect God’s goodness toward us.

His good gifts consist of resources that we need to survive, the things that He provides for our enjoyment, and the precious people in our lives that we know as “Friends.”

His perfect gifts are Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and His amazing grace. Jesus is the perfect remedy for our sin. The Holy Spirit is the perfect power source for living out the Christian life. And grace is the perfect plan of redemption that God designed before the world began.

This Light Reflection inspires us to marvel at the brilliance of God’s blessings in the Year to Shine.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – In the Year to Shine, today’s Vital Step to a Radiant Faith is to worship God in our trials.

It has been said that “trials are not enemies of faith, but are opportunities to prove God’s faithfulness.”

God can work through our testing of our faith to build our faith to bolder places.

It happened in Acts 16, where Paul and Silas were in jail. About midnight, they were singing hymns to God. Other prisoners were listening to them. Then there was a violent earthquake that shook the foundations of the prison. Everyone’s chains came loose.

This event led to the conversion of the jailer, who asked Paul and Silas, “what must I do to be saved?” They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.” The jailer did believe and was filled with joy.

Worshiping God in our trials is a Vital Step to a Radiant Faith that makes a difference in our world.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Light Reflection is from Ephesians 2, verses 6 and 7.

“And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.”

God’s grace is an amazing expression of His love for us where we receive what we do NOT deserve. God’s grace is a gift that saves us from our sins.  That gift was made available through the price that Jesus paid with the shedding of His blood.

God’s grace not only saves us from sin, but also raises us to a new position in Christ. We are declared “Not guilty”.  When Jesus died on the cross, the curtain of the temple was torn from top to bottom, giving us access to the Presence and holiness of God by faith.

God’s grace also gives us access to the treasures of heaven. We have a living hope that the future looks bright in the picture of eternity.

This Light Reflection inspires us to marvel at the brilliance of God’s grace in the Year to Shine.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – In the Year to Shine, today’s Vital Step to a Radiant Faith is to worship God through the pain of living.

Grief, sickness, a financial crisis, and conflict: These are some of the challenges that add stress to our lives, and threaten to steal the joy of our faith.

But God’s love is our source of hope through the good and bad times. His goodness never changes through changing events. His grace is greater than our circumstances. His Presence is a source of peace in the midst of the raging storm.

When a man named Job faced disaster in the Bible, he said in Job 1:21, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised.” He praised God in his pain and persevered in his faith.

Worshiping God through the pain of living is a Vital Step to a Radiant Faith that makes a difference in our world.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Light Reflection is from Psalm 119, verse 165.

Great peace have those who love your law, nothing can make them stumble.

Steven Curtis Chapman says in one of his songs that there is no better place on earth than the road that leads to heaven. There is something profoundly peaceful about knowing that we are in the center of God’s will with Jesus leading the way.

God’s law is a light that guides us in God’s will, revealing the wisdom we need for standing firm in the faith. Heeding His wisdom enables us to avoid the stumbling blocks of unbelief and disobedience.

Loving God’s law will lead us in the way of loving God and the people He has made. Those are the two greatest commandments in the Law, based on love, leading to peace.

This Light Reflection inspires us to enjoy the peace of loving God’s Word in the Year to Shine.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – In the Year to Shine, today’s Vital Step to a Radiant Faith is to see the eternal perspective from God’s point-of-view.

If our focus is only on today, or on matters in this present life, we are only seeing part of the picture. God has an eternal plan, and His desire is to be with His people forever in a place of pure joy and absolute peace.

In Psalm 73, Asaph admitted that his feet almost slipped. He wrote, “I had nearly lost my foothold. For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.”

When he saw how they lived a care-free life and prospered, he thought he kept his heart pure in vain, and he was troubled.

His perspective changed when he entered the sanctuary of God. In a place of worship, he understood their final destiny. His faith was strengthened when he realized that God guided him with His counsel, and afterward, God would take him into glory.

An Eternal Perspective is a Vital Step to a Radiant Faith that makes a difference in our world.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

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JOHN SHIRK – In the Year to Shine, today’s Vital Step to a Radiant Faith is to worship God from the heart.

Jesus told the woman at the well in John 4:23, “A time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

We might be inclined to associate worship with a church gathering or some of our favorite songs on the radio. While those influences can be part of our worship experience, there is more. Worship is a way of life that is focused on the glory of God. This involves committing our work, our relationships, and our activities to God.

First Corinthians 10:31 says, “Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”

Worshiping God from the heart is a Vital Step to a Radiant Faith that makes a difference in our world.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Light Reflection is from Psalm 119:111.

“Your statutes are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart.”

Joshua was a man of God who inspired a nation to walk with God when he said, “As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” It was his joy to obey God by leading His people.

The light of God’s Word fills us with joy. When we open up the Bible, we see the need of humanity for a Savior, which God provided through Jesus Christ. We are encouraged by His plan for our lives, to bless us with His grace and guide us in His truth.

We also see how His statutes are given in love to protect us and provide for us. From a heart of gratitude for all that God has done for us, we want to obey Him and honor His name. It is our joy to serve Him. First John 5:3 says “this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.”

This Light Reflection inspires us to find joy in following God’s statutes in the Year to Shine.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Light Reflection is from Psalm 119:81.

My soul faints with longing for your salvation, but I have put my hope in your word. My eyes fail, looking for your promise; I say, ‘When will you comfort me?’”

In the Old Testament, there was a yearning for a Redeemer to come and rescue the soul from the penalty of sin. This was something that the law was powerless to do. This statement of hope expresses longing for the fulfillment of God’s promise of comfort. Jesus fulfills the longing of our heart for salvation.

Jesus said to those resisting Him in John 5:39, “You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.”

The light of God’s Word brings us hope in the presence of Jesus.

This Light Reflection inspires us to search God’s Word for the hope that is found in Jesus in the Year to Shine.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com