| A friend reminded me recently of the subtle, | | | | account will supplant gnawing emptiness. I seek |
| subversive nature of sin. He pointed out how the | | | | acknowledgment and approval, hoping in |
| world offers many shiny promises of hope and | | | | desperation that a human spotlight can drive |
| fulfillment. Money, possessions, and | | | | away fearsome shadows. I'm certain that enough |
| accomplishments dangle before us constantly, | | | | success will somehow cast out the fear lurking in |
| cleverly tempting us to swallow the lure of false | | | | dark corners of my heart. |
| security. | | | | But cars and bank accounts only enhance |
| I thought about his observation in terms of The | | | | emptiness because there's never enough. The |
| Story Of The Jar, a metaphor that involves filling | | | | spotlight only sharpens and enhances the |
| a jar with rocks, gravel, and sand. The lesson is | | | | shadows. Each accomplishment highlights lingering |
| that you have to put the big stuff in first before | | | | failure. Human attempts to fill the jar are simply |
| the space is consumed by smaller, less important | | | | false. They're like sparkle instead of authentic light. |
| items. | | | | The diamond has no light of its own; it can only |
| Jesus spoke directly to our tendency to fill our jar | | | | sparkle when it reflects true light. Flip off the |
| with shallow, meaningless rubble until there's no | | | | switch and the sparkle disappears as well. |
| space for the truth. | | | | There's only one source of light and truth. I can |
| This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, | | | | never fill the jar properly, but fortunately I don't |
| but men loved darkness instead of light because | | | | need to. Jesus fills my jar, and the entire world, |
| their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil | | | | with the true light. He stepped down into my |
| hates the light, and will not come into the light for | | | | darkness and offered a simpler way. My frantic |
| fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever | | | | efforts to shovel the world's version of meaning |
| lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it | | | | into my jar aren't required. |
| may be seen plainly that what he has done has | | | | I want to live by His truth and come into His light. |
| been done through God."[John 3:19-21] | | | | Paradoxically, that's also the best way to sparkle. |
| I so frequently fill my jar with the artifacts of | | | | What's one way you scramble to fill your jar that |
| darkness, as though a newer car or a bigger bank | | | | doesn't work? |